We deserve more than mobocracy in House

On Thursday, a section of Members of Parliament voted to remove Mityana Municipality MP Francis Zaake from the Parliamentary Commission for allegedly disparaging Deputy Speaker of Parliament Anita Among.

The vote was a culmination of two weeks of an investigation by Parliament’s Committee on Rules, Privileges and Discipline, that found Mr Zaake guilty of misbehaviour and misconduct.

The case drew parallels with what happened in Parliament in 2008, when then Deputy Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga dragged Kibuku County MP Saleh Kamba to the same committee for  alleged defamation.

The charges arose out of remarks that Mr Kamba made during a meeting of the NRM Parliamentary Caucus where he accused Ms Kadaga of having campaigned for Mr Abdu Katuntu against Kirunda Kivejinja in the November 2007 Bugweri County parliamentary by-elections. Kamba alleged that Ms Kadaga had addressed one of Mr Katuntu’s rallies. The petition collapsed because Ms Kadaga was the complainant, prosecutor and judge at the same time.

Now whereas it was Bardege-Layibi Division MP Ojara Mapenduzi who set the ball rolling, Ms Among was the prosecutor and judge in a matter in which she had an obvious interest. She, therefore, had no business presiding over the House when the committee report was tabled, debated and amended to pave way for the censure.

Unless there was malice aforethought, she should have deferred debate on the matter until such a time when someone else would be in a position to preside over the House.

One of the citizenry’s expectations of Parliament is that it represents its interests and not those of its leaders. That is why the biggest concern has previously been that the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), had been using the tyranny of numbers to achieve its agenda or for the aggrandisement of its leadership. There are now indicators that the tyranny of numbers is being used for the benefit of Ms Among.

Even before Thursday’s events, it was clear that the air around Parliament is stifling. Sections of the media have chosen not to cover some aspects of the business of Parliament just because they would rather not provoke the wrath of the powers that be.

And it is not just the media. Sections of the legislators cannot freely engage in certain debates or simply steer clear of certain discussions for fear or rubbing the authorities the wrong way.  It is something we can work to reverse.