FDC, NUP cry foul as voting in Omoro gets underway

Opposition parties National Unity Platform (NUP) and the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) have cried foul over cases of bribery, intimidation and election violence as the Omoro by-election gets underway.

By 7 am on Thursday, voting at the various poling stations in Omoro had started, with numbers building up amidst tight security deployment.

At Omoro Town Council where the FDC candidate Justine Odongo is expected to vote from, voting was underway as early as 7am, although Odongo told journalists that he might not vote.

According to the FDC candidate, their offices were allegedly raided on Wednesday night and he wants the police to explain.

FDC party president Patrick Oboi Amuriat revealed last night that their offices in Opit had been raided, and said that the election had been turned into a military operation.

The party also claimed that the NRM was using vehicles with hidden number plates to supply sugar, bars of soap and bribing voters with money while terrorising them and other opponents.

Speaking to Nile Post, Aswa River Region Police Spokesperson David Mudong Ongom however said that they have no information relating to a raid at the party offices.

Mudong said that the police has taken up the matter for investigation and if anything, they will update the public on their findings.

Leader of Opposition in Parliament, also NUP MP for Nyendo - Mukungwe Mathias Mpuuga also claimed on Thursday morning that their agents were being blocked from accessing certain polling stations.

“We have also seen some military vehicles with covered number plates but we are monitoring the developments,” Mpuuga said.

On Wednesday, Mpuuga and the NUP leadership in Gulu held a press conference where they told journalists that they have information of ongoing voter bribery, the NRM is distributing shs 20,000 per household.

He said that that the NRM was also ferrying people from Lango to vote for the state’s candidate, Andrew Ojok Oulanyah.

The Leader of Opposition warned the Electoral Commision that its integrity is being weighed in this election.

“Our message to the people at EC is that, we don’t trust you, we remember what you did in Kayunga, you have a change to redeem your image,” Mpuuga said.

Nile Post was also able to establish that when the dark set in on Wednesday, some of the number plates of some cars that were seen earlier in the day transporting government officials in and out of Omoro, got covered with polythene bags.

Voting is expected to end at 4pm on Thursday and vote counting will start right away.

Six candidates are competing for the Omoro MP seat that fell vacant after death of Jacob Oulanyah in March this year.