FIVE AYIVU DIVISION LC1 CHAIRPERSONS FINALLY SWORN IN

The five LC1 chairpersons in Ayivu division during their delayed swearing in on November 6, 2026.(Photo by Onzoma Albert)

By Onzoma Albert

Arua City

The five Local Council 1 Chairpersons in Ayivu Division, whose swearing in exercise were suspended have finally been sworn in following an earlier suspension of their swearing-in ceremony.

The initial suspension on August 24, 2026 was directed by the Electoral Commission due to complaints lodged by opponents who lost in the recent LC1 and LC2 elections.

During the initial swearing-in ceremony for LC1 and LC2 Chairpersons in Ayivu Division, the Electoral Commission had instructed the Office of the Town Clerk of Arua City and Ayivu Division to postpone the swearing-in of the five affected LC1 Chairpersons until the complaints against them were resolved.

His Worship Malon Avutia, Mayor of Ayivu Division, publicly read a letter issued through the Arua City and Ayivu Division town clerks, which authorized the swearing-in exercise to proceed.

This announcement was made to jubilant supporters who had accompanied the five LC1s to the Ayivu Division headquarters. Mayor Avutia also appealed for peace and unity in the affected cells.

“This complain alone prompted us to write to electoral commission because some of you kept on coming to our office here and when we wrote the commission replied to us, stating that the commission has concluded the hearing of the election petition from the 8 cells of Arua city where the outcomes of elections were disputed and established that the complains raised are outside its constitutional mandate and accordingly dismissed them paving way for this swearing in exercise” he said.

The specific cells whose LC1s were sworn in are Andewa and Rupa Cells in Yabiavoko Ward, Ekarakafe Cell in Adalafu Ward, Oluodri Cell in Ariwara Ward, and Ezova Cell in Driwala Ward.

Although the swearing-in proceeded, five complaints against the affected LC1 Chairpersons had been submitted to the Electoral Commission headquarters for further guidance and directives.

Jimmy Droma, Deputy Town Clerk of Ayivu Division, appealed to the five newly sworn-in LC1s to unify their communities, which had been divided by election petitions and delays. He urged them to serve everyone in their cells without any segregation.

“This suspension caused a lot of divisions in some wards and cells because the election petition was not yet solved, now today issue has been addressed the divisions in the cells and wards must stop with immediate effect because these are now the official LC1 Chairpersons for your cells, to my newly sworn in LC1 Chairpersons you should go back and work with everyone in your cell without segregation,” he said.

The swearing-in ceremony was conducted by Counsel Henry Odama, Arua City Senior Legal Officer. This followed official communication from the Electoral Commission Chairperson, Justice Simon Byamukama, through the Arua City town clerk and Ayivu Division town clerk.

This communication directed them to proceed with the swearing ceremony of the five LC1 Chairpersons after the complaints raised against them had been addressed.

The ceremony was rescheduled by the Town Clerk of Ayivu Division after receiving official authorization from the Electoral Commission and the Office of the Arua City and Ayivu Division Town Clerk.

This authorization came after the complaints had been resolved by the Electoral Commission, as confirmed in its letter dated October 28, 2026.

Written by newsroom-radiopacis