By Charles Katabalwa
23 December 2020
The ruling National Resistance Movement-NRM is scheduled to spend close to Shillings 60billion to bolster support for its candidates across the country.
An Internal Memo issued by the NRM Secretary-General, Justine Kasule Lumumba on Wednesday indicates that the money is meant to facilitate their candidates to procure campaign materials, transport, airtime, water and refreshments for task forces and campaign agents.
According to the memo, each constituency candidate is entitled to the facilitation of Shillings 40million.
Records from the Electoral Commission show that there are 353 constituencies. Save for a few constituencies like Mawogola North where the party did not field a candidate due to disagreements over the winner of the primaries, the party has candidates in the remaining constituencies nationwide.
This means that the party will spend Shillings 14.12billion to facilitate its candidates. The party has allocated Shillings 50 million to each woman parliamentary candidate. There are 146 districts and 10 cities which also have a woman MP.
This means the party will spend Shillings 7.8billion on its women parliamentary candidates nationwide and at the same time the party national Special Interest Group parliamentary candidates will pocket Shillings 80million. There are four of candidates in this category, who will receive Shillings 320million altogether.
The rest of the 16 Special Interest Group parliamentary candidates, who represent the country’s four regions, will bag Shillings 60million each. This translates to Shillings 840million for the 16 NRM party candidates. The memo also notes that the party will reimburse the Shillings 3 million nomination fees paid by each candidate to the Electoral Commission.
This will cost the party Shillings 1.587 billion for the 529 candidates. For the 10 City Mayoral candidates, the memo said, each will receive Shillings 60million which translates to Shillings 600million. On the other hand, each of the 146 candidates for the LC V chairperson’s seat will receive Shillings 50million. This translates to Shillings 7.3billion. For each of the candidates for the directly elected councillor to the district or city, the party has earmarked Shillings 1million.
According to Electoral Commission figures, there are 2184 sub-counties in the country. This means that NRM will spend Shillings 2.184billionon on this category of candidates. For the woman councilors at the division and city levels, the party will pay Shillings 1.5million for each candidate. For the 2184 sub-counties, the party will part with Shillings 3.276billion. For the 41 municipal or city division chairpersons, the party will pay each candidate Shillings 20million which translates to Shillings 820million.
The memo also notes that each councilor at the division will receive Shillings 500,000, which brings it to Shillings 2.184billion. For the 2184 sub-county chairperson candidate, the party will pay each Shillings 1million meaning that they will spend Shillings 2.184billion. For councilors at the sub-county level, Shillings 100,000 has been aside for each of the candidates.
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