Electoral Commission has teamed up with Police to investigate allegations of voter bribery and intimidation against Mathias Nsubuga, the DP candidate and his NRM rival John Alintuma Nsambu in the Bukoto South by elections. It follows accusations of voter bribery against the duo made by their rivals in a crisis meeting convened by the commission on Tuesday.
During the meeting, independent candidates Dan Katula, Joseph Ssebayiki and Robert Rutalo tasked Electoral Commission to disqualify Nsubuga and Nsambu for alleged involvement in voter bribery and intimidation. Robert Rutalo alleged that the two main contenders were dishing out 20000 shillings to each voter in breach of the presidential and Parliamentary election act.
He said that duo also distributes soap, sugar, salt and maize flour to voters to win over their support. Rutalo insisted that unless Electoral Commission disqualifies Nsubuga and Nsambu he will petition court to nullify the election results in case one of them wins the July 12th polls.
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Joseph Ssebayiki and Dan Katula also candidates asked Electoral Commission and police to impound the numberless vehicles and motor cycles being used by Nsambu’s campaigners to bribe voters. Ssebayiki said the vehicles are being used by a team led by Aisha Kabanda, a state house operative in a door to door campaign to bribe voters. Ssebayiki claims that he tried to intercept the team at Kiwangala and Kkingo Sub County headquarters but he was intimidated by a team of security operatives escorting them.
As a result, Gracious Aryaijja, the Lwengo district returning officer and Simon Peter Wafana, the Southern Region Police have decided to launch joint investigations against both candidates. Aryaijja says that he recorded the allegations against Nsubuga and Nsambu and handed them over to police for investigations before appropriate action is taken against the implicated candidates.
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Simon Peter Wafana, the Southern Region Police Commander says that he has deployed detectives to hunt for the numberless vehicles and motorcycles that are being used to bribe votes, adding that the use numberless vehicles is in breach of traffic laws.
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Mathias Nsubuga and Alintuma Nsambu boycotted the crisis meeting. But Dick Lukyamuzi, one of the campaign managers of Nsubuga denies their involvement in voter bribery and instead points an accusing finger at Nsambu’s camp. Nsambu also denies the allegations saying that he only buys refreshments like soda and water for his supporters during campaign rallies because he doesn’t want them to go on an empty stomach.
