RE: VIOLENCE AND INTIMIDATION OF CANDIDATES
The Commission wishes to appeal to you, Your Excellency, as the Head of State and fountain of honour in Uganda, to intervene and save the democratic process from disintegration by ensuring peace and harmony in the electoral process.
The Commission has received disturbing reports and complaints of intimidation of candidates, their agents and supporters which in some cases has resulted in loss of life and property
In a meeting that the Commission held with candidate Dr. Kiiza Besigye on 22nd February 2001, a number of issues of public concern were raised regarding the way security matters have been handled particularly during the campaign period.” (Emphasis is added)
After drawing attention to the law on the powers and functions of the Commission and to its operational limitations, and intimation that the Commission had entrusted the keeping of security to the police, Chairman Kasujja went on to write-
“We also expect that the deployment of PPU is made where the President is expected to be as this is a facility that Your Excellency is entitled to as the incumbent. We have also issued press statements instructing public institutions including RDCs and DISO to treat all candidates equally as is provided for in the Presidential Act 2000 and we expect them to abide by those instructions.
The Commission therefore, would like to request you as Commander- in-Chief of the Armed Forces to instruct armed personnel not to do anything that would be interpreted as contrary to law and thus jeopardise the democratisation principles that our country has embarked on since the government of NRM came to power..
Your early intervention in this matter will go a long way to enable us fulfill our duties as laid out in the Constitution and other Laws of this country.” (Emphasis is added).
The next, in time, was the letter I have just referred to, which Loius Otika wrote to the Commission on 26 February, complaining, inter alia that one of the people allegedly tortured by Maj. Kakooza Mutale’s group that day, Isaac Katerega, was rushed to hospital in Busia where he died. The Court did not receive direct evidence in proof of the alleged torture and/or death as a fact and the surrounding circumstances.
On 7th March 2001, four candidates, including the Petitioner, wrote a letter to the Chairman of the Commission. Under the sub-title “Security, Violence and Intimidation”, they referred to the deployment of the Army Commander with other Senior Army Officers to take charge of security and added:
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