KAMPALA: Uganda’s army has denied it has polling stations inside the barracks that soldiers were not voting freely.
The army spokesperson, Lt Col Paddy Ankunda dismissed claims by Simon Nangiro that he had received complaints from soldiers that they were not voting freely inside the barracks because they closely monitored by the bosses.
It’s illegal to have polling stations in barracks. They are supposed to be outside the barracks. “We would like to clarify that there are no and there shall never be any polling stations in any barracks” he said.
Lt Col Ankunda also dismissed comments attributed to the Army’s fourth infantry division commander, Lt Ronald Ovon that soldiers who recently returned from South Sudan were being registered yet the registration exercise ended in May this year.
Lt Ovon was quoted in the media on Wednesday that the soldiers were being registered on a special arrangement because they were outside Uganda.
But Lt Col Ankunda said:”The UPDF would also wish to affirm that no UPDF Soldiers are being registered for National IDs as claimed. The Force followed the National program on registration where the troops registered for the National Identity Cards ONLY UNTIL May 11, 2015 when the exercise was closed to all citizens. Those who might have missed out shall do so when the registration exercise reopens after the general elections”.
