KAMPALA- The Electoral Commission (EC) has petitioned court seeking more time to enable them cater for the participation of prisoners and Ugandans in the Diaspora and prisoners in national elections.
In an application that was filed on Tuesday in the High Court, EC through its legal officer Mr Hamid Lugoloobi stated that the commission does not have money to facilitate the process.
Mr Lugoloobi said that the money that was allocated to the commission for the 2020/2021 financial year can only handle registered Ugandans.
Last month, Justice Lydia Mugambe, ended the 25- year ban on voting rights of prisoners and Ugandans abroad.
“As citizens, Ugandans of eighteen years and above who are in prison or in the Diaspora have the right to vote under Article 59 of the Constitution,” Justice Mugambe ordered.
However, Mr Lugoloobi in his affidavit said that without another source of independent funding, the Covid-19 pandemic; coupled with the limited timeframe of only seven months to the polls, the EC cannot open the voter register to include prisoners and Ugandans abroad.
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