3.
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4.
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5.
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6.
A person who during the campaign in respect of an
election solicits from a candidate or a candidate’s
agent any money, gift, alcoholic beverage or
other consideration in return for directly or
indirectly influencing another person to vote or
to refrain from voting for a candidate or in
consideration for his or her voting for the
candidate or not voting for another candidate,
commits an illegal practice”
The language of the above section is clearly talking about a person targeted for a bribe
to be a voter. It necessarily, in my view, follows that one of the ingredients to be
proved in the offence of bribery is that the target person or persons is or are registered
voters. Group bribery therefore, in my view, has no place in that law. The offence
can only be proved against members of a group in their individual capacities basing
on particulars relevant to each ones’ status as a registered voter.
If Parliament intended to cast the net so wide as to get groups and villages, it would
have clearly stated so. Iam comforted in this view by the holding of my learned
sister C.K Byamugisha JA in Kirunda Kivejinja Ali vs Katuuntu Abdu Election
Petition Appeal No. 24 of 2006 at page 27 when she stated;
“It is therefore essential in allegations of bribery for the
party alleging the same to prove on a balance of
probabilities that the person or persons allegedly bribed
were registered voters.”
I am fortified in the same
view by the holding of the Supreme Court in the case of
Rtd Dr.Kizza Besigye Vs Electoral Commission and
Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, Presidential Election
Petition No.I of 2006 in which Oder, JSC, as he then
was stated;