Vally Kanzira, the Kasese District Returning Officer is being held in unidentified hotel in Kasese town. Kanzira was picked up on Saturday last week by a team of detectives from the Political and Media Crimes Units in Kampala and taken to a secret location for questioning. He is being accused of alleged fraud during the recently concluded Kasese district Woman MP by-elections. Winnie Kiiza, the FDC candidate emerged winner after polling 97,669 votes against her NRM rival Rehema Muhindo who polled 59,946 votes.
The whereabout of Kanzira has been unknown since his arrest on Saturday. But, a police officer, who spoke to URN on condition of anonymity for fear of being reprimanded, told URN this morning that Kanzira is being held in one of the hotels in Kasese town. He says Kanzira is being held in a hotel to prevent him from interfering with the ongoing investigations being carried out by detectives from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) headquarters.
When Uganda Radio Network contacted some of top Kasese Police officers over the matter, they declined to reveal his whereabouts. Simon Kuteesa, the police spokesperson only said that Kanzira is facing charges of neglect of duty but declined to reveal his whereabouts. Aidah Akello, the head of Electoral Offenses desk at Kasese Central Police station refused to comment on the matter. She referred the reporter to Fred Mirongo, the head of the Political and Media Crimes Unit.
Mirongo who is in Kasese also refused to reveal the whereabouts of Kanzira. On Monday, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party called on the police to release Kanzira. Wafula Oguttu, the FDC spokesperson said Kanzira is being punished for shunning a night meeting called by Crispus Kiyonga, the Defense minister in which he was summoned to present take the voters’ register.
The arrest of Kanzira came a day after President Museveni accused Electoral Commission officials of accepting bribes and conniving with opposition politicians to defeat candidates of the ruling NRM party in parliamentary by-elections.
