The Electoral Commission (EC) has suspended the elections of women’s councils and committees from the village to the national level, EC Chairperson, Justice Simon Byabakama, has announced, citing lack of funds to organize the elections.
In a statement issued Friday, June 24, Justice Byabakama informed the general public, political party leaders and women in particular, that the remaining programme for the elections of Village Women Councils and Committees shall not be implemented as earlier scheduled.
“The Ministry of Finance has informed the Commission that the funds required for conducting the subsequent activities under the electoral Roadmap are not yet available,” Byabakama said in a statement, adding that, “all the remaining activities under the approved programme for conduct of the Women Councils and Committees Elections, starting with the nominations of candidates, which were earlier scheduled for Monday 27th June – 1st July 2022, have been suspended”.
He also added that the EC will issue a new programme for the above electoral activities when the required additional funds are available and appealed to political parties and organizations, aspiring candidates and their supporters, and all other stakeholders in these elections, to remain calm as the matter of the additional funding requirements is being handled by the relevant organs of government.
To date, the EC had finalised the compilation of the Village Women Residents’ Register and is currently conducting the display of the said registers at each village/cell across the country in preparation for subsequent activities, namely, the nomination of candidates and polling at the village level.