Police is holding one of its own over allegations of attempting to steal ballot boxes in the ongoing Bukoto South by election. The suspect has been identified as Gonzaga Yiga, the Sembabule District Criminal Investigations Officer. Yiga was picked up this morning from the Electoral Commission offices in Mabirizi town council when he allegedly tried to grab ballot boxes with intentions of rigging for John Alintuma Nsambu, the NRM Candidate.
Noah Sserunjogi, the Southern Region Police spokesman says that they have detained the cop at Kinoni police station to grill him over his intentions. Also being held are Moses Kasibante, the Lubaga North Member of parliament and Hajji Nasibu Ssempijja, the chief campaigner of Mathias Nsubuga, the DP candidate. The duo was picked up for causing commotion at Sseke secondary school polling station. Noah Sserunjogi, the Southern Region Police spokesman says that they picked up Kasibante and Ssempijja when they stormed Sseke secondary school polling station and started grilling polling officials over delayed polling.
The arrest of the duo has sparked off angry reactions from DP supporters who accuse police of targeting them. Hassan Kasiita, a DP supporter says that the arrest of their officials is meant to intimidate them and pave way for vote rigging. Gracious Aryaijja, the Lwengo district returning officer says that they delayed to dispatch the voting to allow the polling agents to verify them following the attempted theft.
He however says that they immediately started dispatching the ballot boxes after finding them intact. By 9:15, several polling stations in Kinoni had just received voting materials but voting had not yet started. They included Kinoni stage, Kaboyo, Western, Bulhan and St. Steven polling stations. Eriabu Byakatonda, a registered voter at Kinoni town board polling station told URN he was confused by the delayed opening of the polls.
Byakatonda said that he work up very early to cast his vote and rush to work only to find that voting had not yet started. He is worried that the delay is tactical, and aimed at vote rigging.
