Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Robinah Nabbanja has launched the Strategic Plan 2022/2023-2026/2027 and Roadmap for the 2025/2026 General Elections.
“I call upon all political players to organize themselves by this roadmap so that they effectively participate in this process. I implore all stakeholders to carefully examine all the timelines as outlined in the roadmap, and work with the Electoral Commission to smoothly implement the electoral roadmap for 2025/2026 general elections,” she said during the launch on Wednesday.
According to Nabbanja, the Office of the Prime Minister will make sure that the required funds are released to the Commission to smoothly execute the activities as outlined in the roadmap for the next general election.
She further promised that her office will make sure the enactment of relevant laws for the 2025/2026 General Elections is done before the end of 2023/2024 financial year.
On his part, Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister, Hon Norbert Mao, said the EC has been lamenting about civic education.
“I would want us to focus on civic education. The citizens are the nursery beds for leaders because leaders are picked from citizens. We need to make sure our citizens have civic education,” he noted.
He added: “The issues raised such as the need to enact laws to enable the elections are very vital. These are issues that keep Ugandans waiting.”
The EC Chairperson, Justice Byabakama Mugenyi Simon, said it is the commission’s strong desire to work with all stakeholders to have smooth, transparent, free and fair elections.
“The quest for free and fair elections is not a monopoly of the Electoral Commission. Every stakeholder has a role to play in the Constitution. A free and fair election is a wholesome process that involves all stakeholders with the EC playing a lead role,” he stated.
He said the EC is prepared to work with everybody to have free and fair elections.
“The Commission appeals to the Government to consider and approve the creation of new administrative units promptly so that the electoral program and budget are not destabilized. When this is not done, the impact on our preparations, particularly on the demarcation of electoral areas, re-organization of polling stations, and voter education is enormous.”
He appealed to the Government, particularly Cabinet and the Legislature, to ensure timely amendment and/or enactment of the relevant electoral laws.
“This is critical because any amendment in electoral laws will have to take into consideration, the electoral roadmap, the procurement timeframes by PPDA requirements, and the impact on the overall elections planning and budget.”
“The Roadmap will enable the various stakeholders in the electoral process to achieve the following: a) Improvement in the planning for participation and implementation of electoral activities; ) Improvement in co-ordination of electoral activities; c) Timely implementation of scheduled electoral activities; and, d) Transparency in the implementation of electoral programs and activities.”
According to Justice Byabakama, the detailed objectives of this Strategic Plan are to: a) Enhance inclusive citizen participation in the electoral process; b) Strengthen stakeholder collaboration and engagement in the electoral process; ) Deliver regular free and fair elections and referenda; d) Improve timely, gender and equity responsive and accurate information sharing, public trust, and confidence in the electoral process; and, e) Strengthen the institutional capacity of the Electoral Commission.
“The Strategic Plan we are launching today is a result of extensive research and stakeholder consultation. Following the conclusion of the 2020/2021 General Elections, the Commission conducted Post-Election Evaluation workshops across the Country with various key stakeholders in the electoral process.”
He said the stakeholders gave them their honest assessments of how the electoral process and the conduct of the 2020/2021 General Elections were done.
The Electoral Commission Secretary, Leonard Mulekwah, said they expect the nomination of candidates for President to take place between 2nd October and 3rd October 2025.
“This is in line with the Presidential Elections Act. Demarcation of the electoral areas should be done by July 2024. We should have the general update of the National Voters’ Register by January 2025,” he added.