Five Makerere University alumni have petitioned the institution’s top governing body, the University Council, seeking an immediate halt to the Convocation election scheduled for October 31. The group argues that the university is rushing into the poll without resolving critical legal, electoral, and administrative frameworks governing the alumni body.
In a petition addressed to the Makerere University Council, alumni members Ruth Kitamirike, Ssenteza Raymond, Nattabi Margaret, Muhwezi Joshua, and Oluka Sylus demand the withdrawal of the current election notice, the publication of a finalized Convocation Statute, and the conduct of fresh elections under clear, settled guidelines.
The petition comes as the university prepares to host the Convocation’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) and polls at the Imperial Botanical Beach Hotel in Entebbe on October 31.
The petitioners emphasize that proceeding with an election in the absence of a Convocation Statute poses a severe risk to governance, noting that the University Council itself previously acknowledged this legal vacuum.
‘The prudent and lawful course is to suspend the process, urgently complete and publish the statute, and then hold a fresh election under settled rules before the present term ends in December 2026,’ the petition reads in part.
Disputed electoral rules and fees
According to Council records dated February 7, 2023, cited in the petition, the university acknowledged systemic flaws surrounding the chaotic 2022 Convocation election and ordered the drafting of a missing statute. The petitioners warn that failing to enact this framework before another vote leaves incoming leadership without a clear legal footing.
The alumni also challenge the transparency of the election notice, alleging that members have not been provided adequate procedural details.
‘Members have received a date, a venue, and two election agenda items, but not the rules governing who may vote, stand, appoint a proxy, challenge exclusion, observe the count, or seek a recount,’ the petitioners state. ‘Respectfully, this does not provide sufficient notice for an election carrying a four-year term.’
To ensure fairness, the petitioners want the Council to explicitly clarify the electoral roll, nomination guidelines, voting arrangements, proxy rules, complaint mechanisms, and procedures for rectifying voter register omissions.
Additionally, the petition challenges a recent hike in the Convocation membership fee from Shs10,000 to Shs50,000. Citing the Convocation Constitution, the petitioners note that adjusting membership fees requires General Assembly approval and have called on the Convocation Executive to present a valid authorizing resolution.
‘Unless the Executive can produce a valid General Assembly resolution authorising the increase, the UGX 50,000 requirement appears to have been imposed without the approval required by the Constitution,’ the petitioners argue, adding that tying voting rights to a disputed fee systematically disenfranchises eligible voters.
Accessibility concerns and 2022 election ghosts
The choice of venue has also drawn sharp criticism. Holding the poll at an Entebbe hotel with an 8:00 AM start time, coupled with a lack of declared accessibility measures, presents major hurdles for upcountry alumni, international members, and persons with disabilities.
‘For an alumni body whose members live throughout Uganda and abroad, a process that cannot be completed remotely creates an avoidable barrier to payment, registration, voting, and candidature,’ the petition highlights, urging the university to adopt electronic registration, remote voting, and hybrid options.
The group further insists that unresolved grievances from the December 30, 2022 election must be addressed before any new vote takes place. The 2022 poll was marred by widespread confrontation over the voters’ roll, voter suppression, missing names, and military interference.
‘The election activity was interrupted; police and armed military personnel entered the process; members were removed; and voting continued after candidates, agents, or supporters could no longer participate normally,’ the petitioners recount.
They caution Council that merely shifting the venue out of Kampala does not cure the underlying problems: ‘Moving the election to Entebbe would not resolve those concerns and raises questions about entry control, security command, use of force, exclusion of candidates or observers, and access to university welfare, disability, and medical support.’
Financial accountability and demands
The petitioners also raise serious governance concerns regarding financial oversight, asserting that no AGMs were held in 2023, 2024, or 2025 prior to the current notice. This lack of regular meetings, they argue, invalidates recent budgetary decisions, activity reports, and fee hikes.
‘The absence of those annual meetings also means that no General Assembly was available to approve an increased annual subscription under Article 9.3(i) or determine fees under Article 6.7(i),’ they contend, calling on Council to compel the executive to publish all audited accounts, financial reports, and previous AGM minutes.
To resolve the impasse, the petitioners are demanding that the Council immediately suspend the October 31 election alongside all associated nominations, voter registrations, campaigns, and ballot procurements.
‘Urgently suspend the election scheduled for 31st October 2026, withdraw the impugned notice, and halt every nomination, registration, procurement, ballot, venue, campaign and declaration step founded upon it,’ the petition concludes.
With the current Convocation leadership’s term officially expiring in December 2026, the petitioners argue that ample time remains for Council to halt the process, reform the electoral framework, and hold a fully transparent, inclusive, and legal election.