| Kii dole!...Ocii here is another one!! MK Ntungamo FDC agents held |
| OTUSHABIRE TIBYANGYE |
| NTUNGAMO The FDC Coordinator for Ntungamo district was arrested by the police on polling day February 23 for allegedly photographing election officials whom he accused of tampering with election results forms. Dr Chris Kateeba was arrested with Mr Steven Byabashaija at Rukoni sub-county headquarters. They said they were arrested while inquiring why some presiding officers were altering results declaration forms that had been brought from polling centres in the sub-county. The District Police Commander, Mr David B alidawa, confirmed the arr! est. The two FDC officials were brought to police on allegations that they photographed polling and security officials without their permission, but we are still investigating, he said. He said they were arrested on orders of the sub-county chief only identified as Mr Bajungu. Kateeba and Byabashaija said they were being framed because they did not have a camera. Balidawa also said the police had not seen a camera which the accused had allegedly used. Kateeba said the Presidential Guard Brigade soldiers tried to arrest him, but he resisted and preferred to be taken by the police. If they accuse me of photographing them, how come they managed to arrest me, but cannot produce the camera I was using as evidence? Kateeba asked. Our only crime was that we questioned the actions of the polling officials at the sub- county who were perusing the declaration forms and registers because they should have been s ealed at the polling centres, he said. He accused the presidential guards and the presiding officers of tampering with the election results declaration forms at the sub-county headquarters. The First Lady, Ms Janet Museveni, who stood for Ruhaama County parliamentary seat on the NRM ticket, defeated FDCs Augustine Ruzindana in the February 23 elections. Ruzindana alleges that Janet used her guards to intimidate and chase away his agents from polling stations. Other malpractices were reported at Kyamugashe barracks polling station where FDC agents Mr Saidi Matovu and Mr Richard Lule were arrested and detained in the barracks as counting of votes was going on. Our two agents were detained and we reported the matter to the police, but nothing was done, the FDC Publicity Secretary for Ntungamo, Mr Barnabas Turyasingura, said. Balidawa said he was not aware of the case. At the commencement of vo ting on Thu! rsaday morning, the two agents had been chased from the same polling station. The situation was saved by the intervention of Electoral Commission officials. At Kibingo Polling Station in Nyakyeera sub-county, the presiding officer Mary Kyomugisha was accused of denying some people to vote while others were allegedly given pre-ticked ballot papers which they rejected. One of the affected persons was identified as Mr Alex Kikatami. Kyomugisha was also alleged to have guided over 20 people to vote until the FDC legal officer in Ruhaama, Mr Arthur Mpairwe, intervened. Mpairwe said they would not accept the results of the said polling station and would use them in their petition to court. In a related incident, a presiding officer, Ms Slyvia Kinkuhaire, at Buhiga Primary School Polling Station in Nyakyera, was accused of encouraging open voting from her table. She was also accused of reading out names of voters in the rigister to come and vo te instead ! of allowing them to vote in their order in the queue. Daily Monitor photographer found her making the roll call of the voters. But when she was asked, she said the number of voters was small, so she found it prudent to call out their names. |
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