We shall crash any election disrupters, CID boss warns
DPP Jane Frances Abodo with CID boss Tom Magambo during a conference at the CID head offices in Kampala on September 3, 2024. PHOTO | ISAAC KASAMANI
What you need to know:
- Ugandans are set to go to polls in early 2026 to elect their next President, members of Parliament, and local council representatives. The previous election cycles have witnessed scenarios of violence and riots, especially when one side feels unfairly edged out.
As the electioneering period nears, the director of Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID), has promised Ugandans that no one will disrupt the process.
Maj Tom Magambo assured the public that the police are capable of ensuring a conducive environment for free and fair elections.
“The truth is that we should assure Ugandans that we [police] are working day and night to ensure we have a free and fair election. There will be no chaos here, if you are busy planning chaos, then you should expect the system to come for you,” said Maj Magambo during a media briefing ahead of today’s inaugural annual DPP/CID coordination meeting at Kibuli, Kampala, yesterday.
He added: “I don’t want to lie to Ugandans, that is why you pay us, that is why we are holding these offices, [so] our people may have a peaceful election and whoever is planning to threaten our people, regardless of the political colours, our work in the Constitution is to make sure that does not happen.
“So I would be lying to you the fourth estate that you see, we are going to sit down as we smile as you burn the city, that will not happen. I want to assure you, if you are planning anarchy, you prepare yourself. You don’t expect a director of CID to turn into a pastor,”
Ugandans are set to go to polls in early 2026 to elect their next President, members of Parliament, and local council representatives. The previous election cycles have witnessed scenarios of violence and riots, especially when one side feels unfairly edged out.
If President Museveni runs again, he would have contested for his sixth straight successive term, to have him in power for over four decades.
Speaking at the same event, Justice Jane Frances Abodo, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), said the two-day engagement will see prosecutors trained in effective handling of election-related cases, reasoning that it is barely a year to the general polls.
She said the training is “in preparation for the upcoming election period, coupled with the need to strengthen collaboration to counter sophisticated and emerging crime trends manifesting in various crimes, including corruption.”
“It is important for the Office of the DPP and CID to work together to investigate and prosecute crimes effectively. By coordinating efforts, law enforcement, and legal authorities can better uphold the law, create a secure environment, and support the government’s initiatives for development and economic progress in Uganda,” she added.
Rough time
During every election cycle, several offences are committed, including bribing of voters, and assault as rival camps fight each other, election petitions challenging the outcome of the polls, among others.
President Museveni is expected to close the two-day coordination meeting tomorrow at the CID headquarters in Kibuli.
The theme for the coordination meeting is “The contribution of ODPP/CID in the Social-Economic Transformation of Uganda.”
