Religious Affiliations and Political Leadership in Uganda: The Case of Iganga District

Abstract

Religion has proved to be one the informal institutions around which politics is built in Uganda. This study examined the influence of religious affiliations on political leadership in Uganda; placing emphasis on Iganga District. The study used a cross sectional research design with both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The study used 247 respondents selected using simple random, purposive and snow ball sampling techniques. The study analysed data using Chi-square test of goodness of fit. The study discovered that religious affiliations have a significant bearing on the political leadership of Iganga District. The study recommended that, politicians should not use religion as a stepping stone for political offices by exploiting the simple majority of followers of a certain religious sect over the other. They should instead reach to the masses irrespective of their religious affiliations and once in office, they should use their mandate to serve the whole community equally rather than favouring individuals of their religious faith. The criterion for granting leadership positions should be on basis of merit and not religion.