Oyam woman MP aspirant and district registrar criticised for alleged misconduct

15 April 2025, 1:44 pm

By Eman Yonah Oruk

Concerns have been raised over allegations that an aspirant for the Oyam Woman Member of Parliament (MP) seat, along with the district and sub county registrars, attended a two-day retreat together at a hotel in Soroti city.

The development has sparked outrage, as electoral laws prohibit aspirants from closely associating with registrars before the conclusion of elections. The matter came to light during a meeting held at Rainbow Hotel in Oyam town council on Saturday, 12 April 2025. Five women aspirants for the Oyam Woman MP seat under the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party attended the meeting. These included Stella Anyango, Susan Apili Okech, Josephine Etit, and Proscovia Acan, who all expressed their dissatisfaction over the alleged retreat reportedly organised by Jane Frances Acilo.

Acilo is said to have instructed the district registrar Jackie Adong to mobilise sub county registrars for the retreat.

Stella Anyango, one of the aspirants, chaired the meeting and voiced her concerns. She stated that registrars, who are expected to act as impartial referees, must remain independent. She added that the incident casts doubt on the transparency of the NRM primaries in Oyam district.

Bless Ajok Otim, another aspirant, expressed her disappointment over the situation, stating that such actions undermine the integrity of the elections. She urged voters in Oyam not to sell their votes and criticised the conduct of the registrars and her fellow aspirant.

Josephine Etit confirmed to reporters that she had learned of the alleged retreat, during which sub county registrars were reportedly taken to Soroti for two days with the intention of influencing the outcome of the NRM primaries.

Proscovia Acan also condemned the alleged bribery, describing it as a serious form of malpractice. She warned that if the matter is not addressed, she may consider standing as an independent candidate. Acan recalled facing similar challenges in the previous election, which she said had weakened the NRM’s candidate selection process in Oyam.

Susan Apili Okech outlined several resolutions to address the issue. These included calling for the intervention of the National Registrar of the NRM, the NRM Secretary General Richard Todwong, and the National Chairperson of the NRM Electoral Commission. She also called for an urgent meeting of the NRM Executive Committee in Oyam to resolve the matter and prevent further conflicts within the party.

In an interview with our reporter, the NRM party registrar for Oyam district, Jackie Adong, distanced herself from the allegations, describing them as political propaganda.

She denied transporting or mobilising any sub county registrars to Soroti for a retreat.

In a written message on WhatsApp to our reporter, Dr Tanga Odoi, the NRM Party Electoral Commission Chairperson, stated that their laws prohibit such actions.

He added that if the allegations are true, he will visit Oyam at any time to address the issues.

Furthermore, he urged the Oyam NRM executive to resolve the matter swiftly to prevent divisions and conflict.