Police in northern Uganda have arrested a local registrar of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party over allegations of tampering with vote tallies during recent party primaries.
Charles Ouma, who served as the registrar for Manwoko village in Kitgum District, is accused of altering ballot counts in favour of incumbent candidate Geoffrey Komakech Alulu in the Labongo Amida sub-county chairperson contest.
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According to police spokesperson for the Aswa region, Joe Oloya, suspicions arose after a viral video appeared to show Ouma skipping numbers while announcing results—jumping directly from 39 to 60 votes during the tallying process for Mr Alulu.
The alleged irregularity prompted his arrest by an officer from the electoral desk at Kitgum Central Police Station. Ouma is being investigated on preliminary charges of forgery and uttering false documents.
Despite the controversy, official results released by Kitgum district NRM election officer Simon Owacgiu declared a different outcome. Mr Owacgiu was confirmed as the party’s flag bearer for the sub-county chairperson seat, securing 719 votes (44.1%). He beat Moses Odokonyero, who polled 497 votes (30.5%), and the incumbent Mr Alulu, who trailed with 413 votes (25.4%).
The NRM has yet to issue a formal statement on the incident, which adds to ongoing scrutiny over the conduct of its local primaries.
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