By Spy Uganda
The Electoral Commission (EC) is undertaking preparatory activities for the conduct of Women Councils and Committees elections (from the village to the national level) 2022, and Administrative Units (LC 1 and LC 2) Elections, due in 2023.
During the elections of the Administrative Units and Women Councils and Committees in 2018, the Commission encountered challenges that included; disputes over the legal establishment of some villages/cells, names of villages and parishes, boundaries of some villages, placement of some villages within sub-counties and contestation over some villages located in wildlife conservation areas and forest reserves.
In addition to the above, since 2018, the number of Administrative Units in Uganda has increased and the current districts/Cities; 146, – Sub Counties/Towns/Municipal Divisions; 2,211 – Wards in the cities; 431 – Parishes/Wards in the districts; 10,259 and Villages/cells; 70,512.
Given the above, the Electoral Commission has announced that it will conduct a verification exercise of all the administrative units across the country from 17th – 26th March 2022.
EC Chairman Simon Byabakama says the purpose of verification is; to update the list of villages in the country, that establishes the actual location and number of Administrative Units for which Administrative Unit and Women Council/Committee elections will be based (S. 7 LGA, Cap 243), update the list of Administrative Units, Town Councils, Municipal Divisions, Municipalities, City Divisions and Districts created since 9th April 2021, and to process splits, mergers of alteration of boundaries of Local Government Administrative Units that have been on halt.
The current Women Councils and Committees were elected during the period July – August 2018, and the Executive Committee of the National Women’s Council was constituted on 23rd – 24 August 2018.
According to the National Women’s Council Act, the terms of office of the said Councils and Committees is four (4) years, implying their term will expire in August 2022.
The current Village/Cell (LC 1) and Parish/Ward (LC 2) Committees were elected in July 2018, and according to the Local Government Act, the term of office of the said Executive Committees is five (5) years, implying their term will expire in July 2023.
The above elections were conducted in a total number of 60,800 villages/cells and 8,387 parishes.
