MPs start handling electoral reforms

The Parliamentary Committee on Legal and Parliamentary Affairs is set to start processing the five electoral reform Bills and have included countrywide consultations in their schedule, Daily Monitor can reveal.

Attorney General William Byaruhanga tabled five Bills on July 25 in which government proposed several reforms ahead of the 2021 General Election.
The reforms are comprised in the Presidential Elections Amendment Bill, 2019, Parliamentary Elections Amendment Bill, 2019, Electoral Commission Amendment Bill, 2019, Political Parties and Organisations Amendment Bill, 2019 and Local Government Amendment Bill, 2019.

Mr Jacob Oboth-Oboth, the committee chairperson, last week said work on the Bills starts today with the Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Gen Kahinda Otafiire, appearing before MPs.

“You know when a Bill is laid before Parliament, there is not much they say about it. Then that opportunity is given to the mover of the Bill to come and state in detail what it is about,” Mr Oboth, also the West Budama South, said.

He said the committee had already written to Ms Rebecca Kadaga, the Speaker of Parliament, seeking permission to resolve into four groups to head to the sub-regions to consult different stakeholders affected by the Bills.

“We are targeting people who are going to be affected by the Bills, especially the political leaders, interest groups and members of public who will want to come public opinion. It is important to note that most changes in the Local government Act affects them,” he said.
After two weeks of countrywide consultations, Mr Oboth said the committee will return to Kampala where other stakeholders, including experts, Uganda Law Society, the academia, political parties, MPs among others, will be consulted.

Asked about how Independent MPs, including himself will handle government move to block candidates, Mr Oboth said there are a lot of questions being asked by legal experts and individual politicians concerning the freedom of association as provided for in Article 29 of the Constitution.
He said the question of independents would not have risen now if political parties had been organising free and fair primary elections.
“The opinion I am getting already from the lawyers and a few others, they are raising concern about Article 29 of the Constitution, which guarantees the freedom of association. So, where you are going to create a sentiment against that right, it will be infringement on Constitutional rights,” Mr Oboth said.

“But we have to get the rationale from this and the minister would have a better view because the concern is that political parties are trying to legislate to send a message that they don’t want independents and if you want, you should have been independent for 12 months,” he added.
An attempt by Opposition to table alternative reforms rests on the decision of Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulanyah, who is expected to make a ruling today on a number procedural matters raised by government in regard to Ndorwa East MP Wilfred Niwagaba and Jinja Municipality East MP Paul Mwiru’s Private Members Bill.

Mr Niwagaba last Thursday moved a motion seeking leave of Parliament to introduce a consolidated Private Member’s Bill which seeks to move at least 30 amendments to the Constitution.

But MPs could not debate whether to grant or not to grant leave after Deputy Attorney General Mwesigwa Rukutana attempted to fight the Bill, saying it is likely to cause a financial implication on the Consolidated Fund. He said most of the proposal will be tackled through a Constitutional Review Commission.

Government reforms
Some of the amendments government is moving are a person elected to Parliament as an Independent candidate may form an alliance with a registered political party or organisation, but the “forming of an alliance shall not be construed as joining that political party or organisation.” Government also wants all independent candidates, including for presidential and parliamentary elections to have ceased to be members of a political party a year to the nominations.

Opposition proposals include two term limits for Presidents, repealing Offices of Vice President and Prime Minister, replacing them with a Deputy President who will be elected as a running mate to a presidential candidate; reducing Cabinet to 21 Ministers and State Ministers respectively; public recruitment of Electoral Commission members; removal of Army representatives from Parliament; and, allowing registered voters to also challenge results of Presidential polls.

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