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Uganda to hold elections in 2021, campaign rallies banned
Uganda will hold a presidential election between January 10 and February 8, 2021, authorities said on Tuesday, introducing restrictions it said were aimed at slowing the spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19).
Simon Mugenyi Byabakama, the election commission chairman, said the commission had banned campaign rallies and urged candidates to use media instead to get their messages to voters.
Opposition parties have previously complained about restricted access to broadcast media, especially in rural areas where they say security agencies bar them from appearing on political shows.
The commission will set the exact date of the election, also for parliament and local governments, later this year, Byabakama said.
Uganda’s health ministry has reported 823 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and no deaths. It began easing a 45-day lockdown, one of the strictest on the continent, in mid-May.
Incumbent President Yoweri Museveni had said it would have been “madness” to hold the elections if the coronavirus persisted.
In power since 1986, former rebel fighter Museveni has not confirmed whether he would run again, but the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party has already asked him to stand.
The strongest opposition presidential aspirant is pop star and lawmaker Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, whose angry, political music has made him a sensation.
On Monday, Wine announced an alliance with veteran opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who has challenged Museveni for the presidency three times. But the substance of the agreement was unclear, including whether the two opposition parties would field joint candidates.
In a potential taste of things to come, the public broadcaster Uganda Broadcasting Corporation refused to air Besigye’s advertisements during the 2011 presidential campaign despite being paid for the airtime. Dr Besigye later sued the public broadcaster for bias and won $21,000 in damages in 2018. -Reuters
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GTA CEO and deputy’s clash sends the wrong signal; both parties should resolve their differences – Fiifi Boafo
Former Head of Public Affairs at COCOBOD, Fiifi Boafo, has called for an immediate resolution of the reported communication dispute between the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), Maame Efua Houadjeto, and her deputy, Abeiku Santana.
Speaking on Joy News on Monday, October 26, 2026, Mr Boafo questioned the circumstances that led to the deputy CEO raising concerns about his access to the chief executive with the sector minister.
He described Abeiku Santana as a pleasant person who relates well with others and expressed concern about the situation, which he said sends the wrong signal about the authority’s leadership.
“I am wondering what is happening at the GTA that the woman doesn’t want to see Abeiku, to the extent that you write to the minister,” he said.
Mr Boafo indicated that the matter required urgent attention to ensure both officials could work together effectively. He added that if the deputy CEO’s concerns were justified, steps should be taken to address them. However, if the problem was also coming from the deputy CEO, the chief executive had the responsibility to address that as well.
His comments follow a letter dated October 22, 2026, in which Abeiku Santana, the GTA Deputy CEO in charge of Marketing and Special Duties, asked the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Abla Dzifa Gomashie, to intervene over what he described as recurring difficulties in securing meetings with the CEO.
In the letter, Mr Santana explained that he had repeatedly requested meetings through the CEO’s secretary or personal assistant but was informed that she was unavailable.
He said the situation had made it difficult to obtain timely guidance, approvals and decisions needed to perform his duties, sometimes resulting in delays in operations, stakeholder engagements and the implementation of key assignments.
He stressed that his intention was not to make a personal complaint but to draw attention to a communication gap that required attention in the interest of effective management and institutional efficiency.
However, in a response dated October 24, 2026, addressed to the GTA Board Chairperson, Ms Houadjeto expressed surprise and disappointment over the concerns raised by her deputy, insisting that she operated an open-door policy, particularly for executive and senior management officers.
The CEO acknowledged the importance of effective communication and timely decision-making and proposed measures to strengthen coordination between the two offices.
These included scheduled executive consultations, a clear procedure for escalating urgent matters, improved coordination of meeting requests, clearer delegation of responsibilities and regular engagement among members of the executive management team.
She proposed an early meeting with her deputy to agree on practical arrangements for implementing the measures.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Medical Doctor and dietician, Dr Bernice Korkor Asare, has urged women to take greater responsibility for their lifestyle choices, particularly their eating habits and levels of physical activity, to help reduce their risk of developing breast cancer.
According to her, although, some breast cancer risk factors, such as family history and certain reproductive factors, may not be within an individual’s control, lifestyle choices offer an opportunity for people to take preventive action.
She made this known during a talk on the topic: “Role of diet in breast cancer prevention” organised by Times Ladies Association of the New Times Corporation, publishers of The Ghanaian Times and The Spectator, in Accra on Thursday.
The event themed “Breast Cancer Awareness- Promoting Early Detection, Healthy Eating and Prevention.” 
She noted that having a risk factor did not automatically mean a person would develop breast cancer, but could increase the likelihood of developing the disease compared with someone without that particular risk factor.
“Having close relatives who have had breast cancer, particularly a mother, sister or daughter, may increase the risk, although not everyone with a family history will develop the disease,” Dr Asare opined. Read More.
By Adizatu K. Munkaila
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