The Electoral Commission (EC) has collected about Shs4 billion in nomination fees from thousands of candidates cleared to contest in the parliamentary elections set for January 15 next year. By the close of the two-day nomination exercise on October 23, more than 1,300 candidates had been cleared to run for Member of Parliament positions.
Each aspirant paid Shs3 million as a nomination fee – an amount that has drawn criticism from civil society organisations, which argue that the cost is prohibitively high and undermines fair political participation.
The more than Shs4 billion collected adds to the Shs160 million earlier raised from presidential nominations, where each contender paid Shs20 million.
Critics have long argued that Uganda’s steep nomination fees restrict access to elective politics, especially for youth, women, and low-income earners, while fuelling commercialised campaigns that cost the country trillions each election cycle.
Ahead of the 2021 elections, political parties under the National Consultative Forum (NCF) petitioned Parliament to cut nomination fees by 50 percent to promote inclusive participation. At the time, NCF chairperson Jolly Mugisha said the high fees were ‘a barrier to many capable citizens,’ noting that ‘from the presidency down to local government positions, the nomination amounts are excessive and discourage genuine participation.’
Ms Sarah Bireete, the executive director of the Centre for Constitutional Governance, reiterated that view, saying the high fees make politics ‘a privilege for the wealthy.’
‘Young people, particularly those from Opposition parties and independents, struggle to raise the Shs3 million required for parliamentary nominations,’ Ms Bireete said in a post.
‘Since the EC is taxpayer-funded, there is no justification for such exclusionary fees,’ she added. However, Electoral Commission spokesperson Julius Mucunguzi clarified that the EC neither sets nor controls nomination fees.
‘Parliament determines nomination conditions and fees,’ he explained. ‘All payments are made into the Consolidated Fund through a designated bank account under the Ministry of Finance. The Commission only manages the election process,’ Mr Mucunguzi added.
In its nomination guidelines, the EC instructed aspirants to pay fees via the Uganda Revenue Authority’s online portal, warning against making payments to district or city accounts.
Despite continued advocacy from groups such as the Forum for Women in Democracy (FOWODE), calls to reduce the high cost of politics have yet to yield results, leaving many potential candidates priced out of the country’s electoral process.