The minister of ICT and National Guidance,Judith Nabakooba,has warned politicians against spreading hate speech ahead of 2021 elections which could be dangerous to the population especially during this COVID-19 crisis.
The outbreak of the pandemic has created a big difference in social life style and also in how business can be conducted in the wake of the virus both in Uganda and across the world.
Consequently, the Electoral Commission recently released the roadmap that will guide the country on how campaigns will be managed and it includes the use of media in a bid to prevent the spread of coronavirus since mass rallies attract big crowds.
However,many political actors have on several occasions expressed their grievances towards the way how these campaigns will be conducted hence causing a lot of discussion on the matter.
But,while addressing the media on Sunday, Nabakooba expressed concern over the negative utterances by politicians which might create fear and panic among the population ahead of the general polls.
“It is therefore unfortunate that some politicians started a campaign of misinforming the public about the purpose of regulating some of the activities in this coming general elections.A number of politicians have gone ahead to use hate speech and threatening violence,” Nabakooba said.
She noted that these politicians are deliberately misinforming the public by
instilling fear and hatred along political lines. She urged the public to remain calm as more consultations regarding the roadmap is underway.
“I therefore want to call upon all political candidates and stakeholders to exercise responsible leadership and we should avoid confusing and misleading the public. I want to call upon the public to remain calm and ignore any call towards any form of illegal activity,”she said.
She added that government polices are in place to protect the electorate.
At the beginning of the lockdown,the ministry of lands declared that there will be no any form of land transactions during the period,but there is still increasing concerns about land eviction and illegal acquisition of land.
Nabakooba warned the public against this kind of act saying that it must stop.
