Govt defends new Speaker election

Speaker Anita Annet Among (L), President Museveni and Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa pose for a photo after election of the new leaders of Uganda's Parliament at Kololo Independence grounds on March 25, 2022. PHOTO | DAVID LUBOWA

What you need to know:

  • At the weekend, counsel Nicholas Opiyo took to his social media accounts and argued that according to the Rules of Procedure of Parliament, the word “Speaker” includes the office of the deputy Speaker, hence there was no vacancy upon the demise of Oulanyah.

The Attorney General, Mr Kiryowa Kiwanuka, Sunday said his legal interpretation necessitating the urgent election of a substantive Speaker of Parliament to replace deceased Jacob Oulanyah even before his burial, was right.

Mr Kiryowa disputed views by a section of lawyers who at the weekend claimed government had misinterpreted the laws and rushed to elect a new Speaker.

“We need to understand a few things about the Constitution, the Rules of Parliament that the lawyers were quoting don’t amend the Constitution. They just give the Constitution the meaning. So anyone who reads the Rules to interpret the Constitution is wrong as the Constitution is the supreme law,” Mr Kiryowa explained.

At the weekend, counsel Nicholas Opiyo took to his social media accounts and argued that according to the Rules of Procedure of Parliament, the word “Speaker” includes the office of the deputy Speaker, hence there was no vacancy upon the demise of Oulanyah.

“Was the Speaker’s office vacant when Jacob died? I think a wider interpretation of the interpretative clause of the Rules of Procedure would suggest it was not since the term Speaker means and includes the deputy. The rush to vote was unnecessary,” Opiyo tweeted.

He added: “The interpretation clauses of the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure seem to make a distinction between the position of the Speaker and the office of the Speaker. The office, in my view, includes the deputy Speaker. In other words, the Speaker is not the office of the Speaker.”

Article 82 (4) of the Constitution states that no business shall be transacted in Parliament other than an election to the office of Speaker at any time that office is vacant.

Then Section 2 (1) of the Rules of Procedure of Parliament, define the word “Speaker” means the Speaker of Parliament, and includes the Deputy Speaker.

But Mr Kiryowa advised those who seem unhappy with his interpretation to petition the Constitutional Court, whose core mandate is to interpret any controversial provisions of the Constitution for clarity.

 “They can go to court and challenge the opinion of the Attorney General. The framers of the Constitution in Article 82 sub sections 1,2,3 consistently use the words Speaker and deputy speaker. They had all the ink to say the same in sub section 4 but they were deliberate and only stated the word office of the Speaker,”Mr Kiryowa further said. 

On Friday last week shortly after the election Ms Anita Among as Oulanyah’s successor, President Museveni cautioned the victors to wait on holding victory parties saying the country was still mourning Oulanyah.

“I urge you not to go around celebrating, we are mourning and actually, this election should not have happened but the law requires so. It is madness to have this election when Oulanyah is not yet buried. People can think we are witches,” Mr Museveni cautioned.

He added: “In Ankole, it is a serious abomination to conduct activities of this nature while mourning. I call upon the stakeholders to look into this law critically with an aim of making it better.”

Asked whether there is need to amend the Constitution and cure the lacuna of rushing to replace a Speaker who dies in office even before burial, Mr Kiryowa responded in affirmative.

 “We have various cultures in Uganda, just imagine if we had a Speaker who professes Islam that demands burial on the very day someone dies. Would we have been able to conduct elections of a new Speaker before burial?" He said.