The long-awaited local government elections are set to begin during the last week of October 2021, a two-week exercise that will run up to mid-November. The polls were delayed by close to one year due to the coronavirus outbreak. There are 340,000 seats in local governments for which new leaders will be elected. They include committees at village, cell, sector and district level (except for districts in Kigali), and members of councils for special interest groups; women and youth councils, and the council of people with disabilities. During an interview with The New Times, Charles Munyaneza, the Executive Secretary National Electoral Commission pointed out the requirements for prospective aspirants at different levels up to the district; 1. Must be Rwandan This applies to all posts from village level to district level. “Every candidate must be Rwandan and a person of integrity, a person who will lead Rwandans with integrity and in a way that they want,” Munyaneza said. According to Munyaneza, Rwandans living out of the country are eligible to stand for elections “But they cannot send in their candidatures and campaign from outside of the country,” he said, adding that they have to be physically present. 2. Must hold no criminal record “The candidate must not have been convicted for any crime and not been jailed for six months and longer,” he said, adding that among the documents required of candidate is a certificate on criminal record provided by Rwanda Public Prosecution Authority. 3. Age of eligibility All candidates must be 21 years and above this applies from village level. “However for candidates who want to be members of the Executive committees from the cell level need to be above 25 years old,” he said. For prospective mayors in different districts, they need to be at least 35 years old. 4. Education level To sit on committees from village to cell level, there is no consideration of any level of education, according to Munyaneza. “But for members of the executive committee at the district and mayors, they need to have a university degree, but there can be an exception if you hold a high school diploma with a track record in leadership in local government, then you can be an eligible candidate.” He added. Munyaneza added that all adults in the country are eligible to vote except people convicted for Genocide, convicted for crimes against humanity, those convicted for defilement, people with mental health challenges and has been proven by a doctor, and those in jail at the time of elections.
