This follows the alleged irregularities in the November 2019 elections. The election that saw Paul Sande Emolot elected as the chairperson of the Iteso Cultural Union Council has been contested on grounds that it was marred with irregularities.
The founding members of Iteso Cultural Union have given an
ultimatum of March 31, 2021, for the Teso Paramount Chief, Emorimor Augustine Osuban Lemukol and his cabinet to conduct fresh
elections of council members.
This follows the alleged irregularities in the November 2019 elections. The election that saw Paul Sande Emolot elected as the
chairperson of the Iteso Cultural Union Council has been contested on
grounds that it was marred with irregularities.
Among the irregularities is the alleged amendment
in the constitution where the union’s electoral body removed interest groups
from sub-counties that would constitute the electorate. The members accused the Institution's Electoral Commission of violating the rights of People with Disabilities, the youth and women when they failed to consider them in the elections.
This forced Emorimor to dissolve the Electoral Commission
and suspend the council in June 2021. But the letters of dissolution of the Electoral Commission and suspension of the council only came to be known in
December 2021 when Emolot, the chairperson of the council called for a meeting in Soroti.
The meeting that was supposed to probe the accounts and
projects undertaken by the institution, approve council committee and
chairpersons, and elect the deputy speaker of the council, among other items
was prematurely adjourned when Emorimor and his cabinet failed to show up on
December 30, 2021.
In a letter to Emolot dated December 29, 2021, Emorimor declined
to attend the planned meeting citing his initial position on the dissolution of
the Electoral Commission and suspension of the council. He also guided his team to follow the recommendations of the
Harmonization Committee chaired by Rev. Fr. Robert Ecogu.
The Harmonization Committee was formed after the 2019
elections when some of the founder members threatened to block the swearing-in
of council members. But the ceremony continued when the presiding magistrate tasked
Emorimor to address the impasse, which he said would be handled internally.
William Alloch, the Chairperson of Iteso Cultural Union founder members says
that they have given the institution up to the end of March to conduct
the elections. According to Alloch, Iteso Cultural Union is now a one-man institution without a cabinet and council. In the Iteso Cultural Union
Constitution, Council is the highest decision making body while the cabinet
implements the resolutions of the council.
Alloch says that the Electoral Commission erred when they
usurped the powers of the council to amend and use the constitution during the election. He notes that the commission, instead of picking
delegates from the sub-counties chose to concentrate at the district level.
//Cue in “There is no…
Cue out…of itself.”//
But Emolot, the disputed Chairperson of Iteso Cultural Council says that less than 10 per cent of the positions had issues, something he notes would be handled
without suspending council. Quoting Article 31 of the Iteso Cultural Union Constitution on the dissolution of
council, Emolot while appearing on a radio talkshow in Soroti said that Emorimor erred in his June letter to suspend council
and dissolve the EC.
//Cue in; “The union may be…
Cue out…respectively”//
According to Emolot, Emorimor should have used another
approach to rectify the anomalies in the 2019 elections other than suspension
of council and dissolution of the EC.
//Cue in; “In Article…
Cue out…not agreeing.”//
However, in his recent public appearance in Madera, Emorimor
said that his leadership is facing opposition because of the little funding
extended by the government and other well-wishers.
“Emorimor was in every clan and his/her work was to serve
not to rule. He/she was would be selected based on the conduct- unanimously. It was
a voluntary service. But now, many people
are coming up and want Emorimor’s office to be subjected to elections because
they see him driven and has some facilitation here and there, it is causing
conflicts into the institution”, he said.
This was during a meeting with Teso leaders
that was called by the Bishop of Soroti Catholic Diocese, Rt. Rev. Joseph Eciru
Oliach. During the meeting, he added that they are working on some amendments to help
the institution grow stronger by identifying the needs of the clans in Teso.
