Where are the main removers of the age limit law?

On December 20,2017 Parliament brought the curtain down three days of debate that saw article 102(b) of the Constitution amended to remove both the lower and upper age limits.

The framers of the 1995 Constitution had placed caps on the age of those who aspire to hold the office of President, placing the lower age limit at 35 and the upper age limit at 75.

Had the article not been removed Mr Museveni would not have been a candidate in last year’s election; Uganda would have witnessed its first peaceful handover of power in over 50 years and; Mr Museveni would be into his second year in retirement.

However, Mr Raphael Magyezi’s tabling of the private members Bill set the stage for what turned out to be an acrimonious debate punctuated by heckles, mass brawls, suspensions of MPs and arrests of MPs by armed men who invaded Parliament. The cocktail of dramatic scenes was however not enough to filibuster the Bill. It is now five years and five days since the Bill was passed. 

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Given the fast pace at which the political landscape changes, along with it the fortunes of political actors, Sunday Monitor now tries to show where the men and women who pushed so hard for the lifting of the lower and upper age limits are.

Raphael Magyezi

In December 2019, Mr Museveni appointed Mr Raphael Magyezi Minister for Local Government. Though Mr Magyezi did not offer himself for re-election in Igara West, he was reappointed to the Cabinet and handed the same docket when Mr Museveni announced his Cabinet of fishermen.

Robinah Nabbanja

The Kakumiro Woman MP, was along with Ms Ruth Nankabirwa and others like Mr Peter Ogwang heavily involved in mobilising MPs to ensure that the Bill was overwhelmingly supported.

For that she was in December 2019 rewarded with an appointment as the State Minister for Health (General Duties). Following her re-election last year, she was elevated to become the prime minister, replacing Dr Ruhakana Rugunda.

Ruth Nankabirwa

Ms Nankabirwa’s political fortunes took a hit in the 2021 general elections when she was beaten to the Kiboga District Women’s seat by Ms Christine Nakimwero Kaaya, of the National Unity Platform (NUP), but Mr Museveni appointed her Minister for Energy and Mineral Development.

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Political analysts believe that this was in appreciation of the shift she put in as Government Chief Whip. She was credited with mobilising NRM MPs to turn up for debate and on voting day. As a result, only 6 NRM MPs skipped the vote  on December 20, 2017. Her reward was meant to have come much earlier, but it still did.

Jackson Karugaba Kafuuzi

The Kyaaka County MP who in 2011 contested for the same constituency seat on an FDC ticket before crossing to the NRM, seconded the Magyezi Bill and was awarded with an appointment as Deputy Attorney General, a post that he still holds.

Peter Ogwang

He was for his efforts rewarded on December 14, 2019 with an appointment as the State minister for Information, Communication Technology and National Guidance. After last year’s general election, he was named State Minister for Economic Monitoring before being moved to the ministry of Education and Sports where he is the State minister for Sports.

Dennis Hamson Obua

Mr Obua, a former Youth MP for Northern Uganda, who represents Ajuri County in Parliament was appointed minister of state for sports in December 2019, a post to which he was reappointed after last year’s general elections. He was however reassigned to take up the post of Government Chief Whip in August this year.

Jacob Oboth-Oboth

The West Budama South MP, chaired Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs which was tasked to scrutinise the Bill after it was tabled by Mr Rafael Magyezi, and was credited with delivering a main report that recommended the removal of age limits on grounds that it”  marginalises the youth and elderly by prohibiting them from offering their candidature in a presidential election“. Mr Oboth had initially been expected to be rewarded as early as 2019, but missed out. He was however appointed state minister for defence when Mr Museveni named his Cabinet of fishermen.

Doreen Amule

Ms Amule was listed as one of the NRM MPs that skipped the December 20, 2017 vote, but the former Amolator Woman MP had been very supportive of the controversial Bill. She had actually been expected to be one of the seconders of the motion

In 2016 during local celebrations of Independence Day some of the attendees grabbed the microphone from her and stopped her from making any further submissions as she was trying to sell the idea of amending the age limits. That attack, however,did not cow her, which is believed to have cost her parliamentary seat.

Mr Museveni however rewarded with an appointment as Uganda’s Ambassador to France.

Solomon Silwanyi

Having beaten the former Leader of the Opposition in Parliament (LOP) during the 2016 general elections, the Bukooli Central MP was elected vice chairperson of the NRM Parliamentary Caucus, which enabled him to work alongside Ms Nankabirwa in mobilising NRM MPs to support the Bill.

After the December 2017 vote, he called for tough action against NRM MPs who either skipped the vote or did not vote the correct way. That stand and the shift he had put in made him look like one that was always going to be rewarded, but it was not until after the 2021 election that he was rewarded with the position of parliamentary commissioner.

Simeo Nsubuga

During celebrations to mark the 24th coronation anniversary of Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi, Mr Simeo Nsubuga was roughed up by Mr Willian Buganda Ntege, alias Kyumakyayesu for being one of the masterminds behind what was deemed an evil Bill, but the reward for being supportive of the said bill did not come which left him frustrated. He soon started attacking the party for not recognising his efforts.

“I have stood with NRM at a time when no one wanted to be associated with NRM, I have sacrificed so much for the sake of NRM, I defended the party when no one could, but is this what they are paying me?” he once lamented.

Matters were not helped by the fact that the people of Kassanda South chose not to re-elect him.

He has however since been appointed as a commissioner on the Uganda Human Rights Commission.

Mwesigwa Rukutuna

The former Deputy Attorney General was very active during debate on the Bill and was at hand to defend its passing when it was challenged in the Constitutional Court, but his reward did not come.During the December 2019 Cabinet reshuffle he was named State Minister for Labour and Industrial Development, which looked like a kick in the mouth.

Matters were not helped by his reported involvement in violence after he lost the Rushenyi County NRM party primaries to Ms Naome Kabasharira. He was accused of having grabbed a gun from one of his bodyguards and shot two people. He was charged with seven counts including attempted murder, assault, malicious damage to property and threatening violence.

Whereas he was later declared the NRM’s candidate in the Rushenyi County parliamentary race, he was still defeated by Ms Kabasharira who garnered 22,152 votes against his 19,417 votes. He has since assumed a low profile.

Moses Grace Balyeku

The former Jinja Municipality West MP, teamed up with Mr Jackson Kafuuzi to second the Magyezi Bill.

“Age should not be a factor that hinders the rights and freedom of any Ugandan to vie for the post of a president,” he said.

However unlike his partners like Mr Kafuuzi and Mr Ogwang, Mr Balyeku was not rewarded in December 2019. He was also not considered for any government job after he suffered defeat at the hands of Dr Timothy Batuwa, in the race for the Jinja North West seat in last year’s parliamentary elections. He has since been living a quiet life.

Robert Ssekitoleko

The former Nakifuma County MP was the first person in September 2016 to seek leave of Parliament to amend the Constitution to increase the retirement age for judges and scrap term limits for commissioners of the Electoral Commission (EC). That was at the time deemed to be a clever way of going about the presidential age limit without making it look like it was intended to benefit Mr Museveni.

Ms Rebecca Kadaga, however, directed that his motion be shelved to allow government time to present an omnibus Bill that would deal with all proposed constitutional amendments. Mr Ssekitoleko remained an ardent support of scrapping age limits , which contributed to his defeat in last year’s parliamentary elections.

He was, however, recently rewarded with an appointment to the Board of Directors of the Uganda Railways Corporation (URC).

Margaret Komuhangi

The former Member of Parliament for Nakasongola was one of a group of MPs that was assigned by the NRM Parliamentary Caucus to closely work with the main movers and pushers of the age limit Bill in mobilising the party’s MPs and independent MPs in supporting the Bill.

She was not rewarded when Mr Museveni shuffled his cabinet in December 2019. She reshuffled defeat at the hands of an independent candidate, Ms Victorious Zawedde, in last year’s parliamentary elections. She is living a quiet life.

Mariam Naigaga

The Namutumba Woman MP was like Ms Komuhangi assigned the task of backing up the main pushers of the Bill in mobilising NRM MPs and independent MPs into supporting the Bill. She was not rewarded when Mr Museveni shuffled his Cabinet in December 2019. She was however re-elected to represent Namutumba in the 11th Parliament, winning a race in which top party honchos campaigned against her even when she was the party’s flag bearer in the race. That partially explains why she defied President Museveni and supported Ms Kadaga’s failed bid to become the Speaker of the 11th parliament.