The European Union (EU) on Thursday urged Uganda to release detailed results from last week’s presidential poll, which was won by long-serving leader Yoweri Museveni.
The East African nation’s Electoral Commission declared Museveni the winner with about 60% of the vote.
The opposition however claimed the election was fraudulent.
The EU’s Election Observation Mission statement was released soon after an aide to Kizza Besigye, the main challenger, said Besigye had been arrested for the sixth time in about a week.
Besigye, who challenged Museveni in three previous elections, was also blocked from leaving his house on Wednesday, when local elections were held across Uganda. Human rights groups say they have been blocked from meeting with him.
The EU mission “encourages the Electoral Commission to publish without delay the detailed results from each polling station” so that voters and the candidates can “comprehensively evaluate the election results,” it said in a statement.
“The electoral process is completed only when all candidates have rightfully exercised the relevant legal avenues without fear, intimidation or other undue restrictions,” Eduard Kukan, the chief observer, said in a statement.
Candidates have 10 days after a winner is declared to contest an election’s outcome.
Besigye’s party is however not yet decided on whether to formally dispute the election results, but said that Besigye’s detention is creating an obstacle to its activities.
