EC Under Pressure Over Delayed Allowances for Presidential Candidate’s Bodyguards

Police officers who guarded presidential candidates during the just-concluded campaigns continue to complain about the delay in payment of their allowances.

While the Electoral commission says it has begun effecting the payments by e-cash, some of the affected officers are concerned that the money is being paid in bits and portions.

This has raised questions over how the Electoral Commission of Uganda managed close to one billion shillings in allowances meant for the candidate’s security detail.

At least 88 officers drawn from specialized police units were deployed to protect the eight presidential candidates for 115 days, from nomination in September until January 17, when results were declared.

Each officer was entitled to 90,000 shillings per day, translating to no less than 10.35 million shillings per officer. That places the total allowance bill at approximately 910 million shillings.

However, three weeks after the declaration of results, officers are complaining publicly and through their commanders that they have not received their payments.

EC spokesperson Julius Mucunguzi did not explain why the payments were delayed or whether the full entitlement of 10.35 million shillings per officer would be paid at once or in instalments.

Police personnel who spoke on condition of anonymity said they had initially been informed that their allowances would be compiled and paid monthly, similar to polling constables. 

That arrangement, they say, never materialized. “It is we who were getting 90,000 shillings per day, but our commanders were earning slightly more. We were told that this money would be compiled and paid monthly like polling constables, but it has not come,” one officer said. 

Commissioner of Police David Manzi reportedly engaged the Electoral Commission over the matter, leading to the current e-cash payment arrangement. Some officers confirmed receiving partial payments ranging between 1.9 million and 2.7 million shillings, far below the total owed. 

“I thought it would come monthly or come at ago since we failed to get it during campaigns. But it is coming in piecemeal. We have 2.7 million shillings, and others have received 1.9 million shillings. We hope it will be paid fully very soon,” a constable said. 

The delay has raised broader questions about election budgeting and financial planning, particularly regarding how operational funds for security deployments are scheduled and disbursed. While the Commission insists payments are ongoing, it remains unclear what caused the lag and whether the nearly one billion shillings allocation had been fully secured before deployment began.