The National Unity platform (NUP) party has questioned the impartiality of the Electoral Commission (EC) after the recently concluded LCI elections, saying they were not freely and fairly conducted.
While addressing the press at the party headquarters in Makerere Kavule on Monday, August 3rd, 2026, the NUP party head of mobilization, Habib Buwembo said even when there are some villages where NUP chairpersons won, there are very many registered incidences of rigging and direct involvement of EC officers to deny NUP winners their victory.
” We congratulate all those who participated in the recently concluded elections and those who won, however, we have registered many cases of Electoral Commission officers and police being involved to deny many of our candidates their win” Buwembo said.
The NUP Secretary General, David Lewis Rubongoya noted that as a party they are not surprised of the actions of EC officers but also asked NUP supporters never to give up even when the odds don’t favor them.
”About LCI chairperson, we all saw what happened in the concluded elections, someone gets 300 people but you announce the one with 30 people. Justice Byabakama and team are shameless. We shall continue to expose the regime in every chance we get,” Rubongoya said.
The NUP party acting president, John Baptist Nambeshe commended all those who participated in the concluded LCI elections and said that it was an act of courage and sacrifice and those who didn’t make it should never give up hope.
”I want to appreciate all those who participated in the LCI elections, there is so much evidence of election malpractice. Thanks for offering yourself and for heeding to the call of our president to contest in the elections,” Nambeshe noted.
The Electoral Commission Chairperson, Justice Simon Mugenyi Byabakama in his press statement dated July 30th, 2026, noted that the elections were conducted freely and fairly, however, he acknowledged the fact that in some places there were a few incidences.
”We had a successful election process but there were however a limited number of villages, 1,135 or 1.6 percent, where polling could not take place or be completed due to unforeseen circumstances, such as disruptions and interference by some individuals and groups, chaos and violence, destruction of polling materials, tied results, disputes about the voters’ registers, or death of nominated candidates, among other reasons,” Byabakama stated.
The Electoral Commission has received several petitions from aggrieved parties and their hope is in the Commission chairperson to intervene so that voters can get electoral justice.
