Makerere students to boycott Friday polls

A section of Makerere University students aligned to the opposition National Unity Platform party have vowed to boycott the 89th guild polls slated for Friday April 14 in protest of the disqualification of Sulaiman Namwoza, an independent candidate and Ms. Nattabi Margaret (NUP)

The communication has been divulged by the NUP head of institutions Mr. David Musiri who says they will not allow the process to proceed when some candidates who had been nominated have been ejected.

“We will not allow the elections to he held,” Mr. Musiri said while appearing on Dream TV this morning. “Mr. Nawangwe has ruined the heritage of this once mighty institution that used to be the nursery bed of future national leaders. Makerere has been a breeding place for national leaders,” he added.

The Friday polls have been reduced to 9 participants after the election of 2 candidates who were accused of breaching the guild statute that prohibits candidates from physically engaging their supporters. Under the new rules, any candidate who conveys meetings or associates with a political party risks being evicted from participating in guild politics. The amendment was adopted following the death of a UCU law student Bewatte Betungura who died during last year’s guild campaigns.