Voting has officially begun in Uganda’s presidential and parliamentary elections, but voters are facing long lines and delayed openings at some polling stations Thursday because of late ballot deliveries.

VOA’s Jill Craig reports from Kampala that many polling stations are still waiting to open, several hours after voting was scheduled to start. 

She said there were long lines outside some Kampala polling stations, and people who had gotten there before 7 a.m. were restless and frustrated as they waited in the heat.

One man told VOA’s Craig: “We shall vote tomorrow I think.”

Paul Bukenya, spokesman for the Electoral Commission, told VOA that all election materials have now been distributed. He said Kampala and Wakiso districts were delayed because materials were dispatched to them last. When asked for a reason, he said only that there were “some delays from the warehouse” and promised they should be arriving soon.

Makerere University education student Ivan Ssebuliba said “If this is happening in Kampala, so close to the Electoral Commission, what is going on in the villages?”

The chairman of the Commonwealth Observer Group, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, on Thursday asked participants in the election to “respect the franchise and refrain from acts of violence and intimidation.” He said the observer group has been examining the whole election process, to determine whether it is compliant with Ugandan laws as well as international rules and standards.

He said, “We are all men and women of integrity and I do not believe any of us would want to sacrifice his or her integrity on the altar of unnecessary convenience.”

President Yoweri Museveni, in power for the past 30 years, faces a challenge from seven opponents, most prominently opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who has lost to him three times in the past. The opposition says the past elections were marred by vote-rigging and voter intimidation.

Museveni maintains that he needs more time to implement his development programs.

Some voters say their priority is peace and stability for Uganda, while others hope for change and a new regime. Voters also say they are concerned about employment opportunities, especially for young people; and health care and education.

More than 15 million people are registered to vote in Uganda. Security forces are enforcing tight security, as voters face some long wait times to cast their votes.

Museveni has been in power since 1986, the end of Uganda’s five-year civil war.
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