Museveni ‘cornered’ on term limits, says EAC will decide

The Seventh Parliament controversially voted to lift term limits from the Constitution to allow President Museveni run for re-election in 2006, a move that came on the backdrop of Shs5m ‘bribes’

The National Resistance Movement legislators sitting in Kyankwanzi on Friday challenged President Museveni on the scrapping of presidential term limits from the Constitution and demanded to know when it will be restored.

The legislators were responding to a paper presented by President Museveni on the East African Community (EAC) integration and how prepared Uganda is to tap into the EAC opportunities.
Mr Theodores Ssekikubo (Lwemiyaga) and Mr Barnabas Tinkasiimire (Buyaga), according to sources that attended the meeting, demanded an explanation from the President on why he was promoting EAC integration yet the term limits were lifted in the Constitution.

“All the other East African Community member states have term limits clearly stipulated in their Constitutions and not Uganda. Why are we talking about the East African integration yet we cannot be like them?,” asked Mr Ssekikubo.

Mr Tinkasiimire, too, reportedly asked the President to comment on the restoration of term limits that was controversially lifted by the Seventh Parliament.
The President was reportedly quick to respond that the matter shall be discussed at the right time by EAC member states. The other member states of the community do have a two-term limit for presidents provided for in their constitution.

“We shall reinstate the term limits if EAC agrees to it,” the President was quoted saying.
The NRM Caucus spokesperson, Ms Evelyn Anite, confirmed that the President re-emphasised the need for Uganda to tap into EAC but downplayed the discussion on the restoration of term limits.

EAC could support term limits
“Well, that was just a by-the-way but the President’s response was that the voters have a full right to vote for leaders they want. In case they have not delivered, they can always vote them out,” said Ms Anite.

She quoted the President saying the community member states might support the idea of removing term limits. The legislators of the Seventh Parliament in 2005 amended the Constitution and lifted term limits giving President Museveni an opportunity to seek another term in the country’s highest office.
But a cross section of Ugandans particularly the opposition criticised the move arguing that the President was manipulating the Constitution to further his stay in power.

The opposition has since 2006 proposed a number of electoral reforms that included amending the Constitution to restore term limits but the government ignored their proposal. Independent-minded MPs last year were mooting a Bill on the restoration of term limits, with a view of restricting future leaders from overstaying in power.