In a bid to commit to democratic ideals and transparency in handling elections, the NRM has come up with a 10 point action plan for free and fair internal elections. The move according to NRM Secretary General Justine Kasule Lumumba, is to avert fall-outs and anger that arise out of questionable party primaries which result into many aggrieved candidates running as independents, or working with adversaries of official party flag-bearers in general elections.
She said the most significant measure to combat such, is the recently endorsed lining-up method in internal elections saying the method is fully transparent as it presents a clear winner and leaves no excuse of foul play to losers.
Hon. Lumumba also points out that unlike the past, the party will undertake a meticulous data entry of all eligible members into the party official voter register also known as the Yellow book. The book she says will have clearly captured details of eligible voters including their village, sub-county, district and region of origin . She says under this new system, cases of multiple voting cannot arise.
Lumumba said materials to be used in registration will be monitored and secured at every stage to prevent tampering, forgery, wastage and other irregularities. Under the new system, registration will be carried out only in gazette places, done before 6pm, and voting materials stored in secure and gazette institallations.
She says names of members seeking to be registered will be read to village members in public to confirm the authenticity of identity before submission at district level. This data will be entered into zonal/regional level, and further scrutinized before they are submitted to the command centre in Kampala.
During the registration process, aspirants for any office or incumbents are prohibited from participating in the registration process which is a preserve of area electoral officials assisted by coordinators from the office of the national chairman.
To ensure that the action plan is effectively implemented and administered for best results and compliance, Lumumba says party administrators have also agreed to work together and avoid any “unprincipled or non-issue” bickering.
She says oneness within administrators at the party secretariat is paramount to the success in archiving the objective of keeping NRM on top. She said the oneness in top party leaders will set an example for lower structures to emulate.
Lumumba emphasizes mutual respect in the leadership of the secretariat with issues addressed through the right forms warning her fellows that without unity, NRM may lose the dominance it enjoys in Uganda’s political arena. She says this effort will be supervised by NRM First National Vice Chairman, Al Hajji Moses Kigongo who is already acting in that regard.