Speaker Oboth backs LC V Chairperson's pay rise
“If we don’t increase salary for you, you will all abandon being LC V; you all want to be MPs. But you have seen some who have come; they have also lost their MP seats. They come with a lot of expectations, but they can’t manage,” Oboth illustrated. At the baseline, he pledged support when the proposal comes to the floor. But urged all and sundry to maintain strategic patience.
Addressing his guests, Oboth said enhancing the salaries of LC V chairpersons was one of the issues previously discussed by Cabinet. (Credit: Maria Wamala)
KAMPALA - Speaker of Parliament Jacob Markson Oboth has thrown his weight behind a proposal to increase the pay of local government leaders.
Oboth made the remarks on Tuesday, September 29, 2026. While addressing a delegation from the Uganda Local Governments Association (ULGA) led by Andrew Moses Awany in his boardroom.
Also present were Herbert Edmund Ariko, chairperson of the House Committee on Public Service and Local Government; Betty Nambooze, chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee (Local Government); Wakiso LC V chairperson Eng. Ian Kyeyune, Kaliro LC V chairperson; Elijah Dhikusooka Kagoda, Richard Okuku and Tororo LC V chairperson John Okea, among others.
Addressing his guests, Oboth said enhancing the salaries of LC V chairpersons was one of the issues previously discussed by Cabinet.
Although he said he was not aware of the latest developments on the matter, Oboth said he believed the Parliament he currently heads would support the proposal.
“You cannot supervise a person who is earning Shs12 million, and you are earning Shs1.7 million. Because that alone can only happen to President Yoweri Museveni, the patriotic Ugandan number one. Who earns Sh3.6 million as salary and is supervising us and all of us, who are earning more than that.”
“As Speaker of Parliament, I earn Sh17 million. Did you know that? After tax and pension, whatever it comes to is about close to Sh7 million. I don’t know why they chop my money too much. A member of parliament, you see them in suits and what, they earn Sh11 million,” he cited.
The only difference, he added, is that they also receive emoluments that depend on the business they transact. He said the twist is that many LC V chairpersons abandon their positions in pursuit of parliamentary ambitions, only to realise that the grass is not always greener on the other side.
“If we don’t increase salary for you, you will all abandon being LC V; you all want to be MPs. But you have seen some who have come; they have also lost their MP seats. They come with a lot of expectations, but they can’t manage,” he illustrated.
At the baseline, he pledged support when the proposal comes to the floor. But urged all and sundry to maintain strategic patience.
LC V Chairpersons speak out
Wakiso District LC V Chairperson Eng. Ian Kyeyune said their salary woes have been made worse by the Local Governments Act.
“It is a very meagre resource. When you look at it, it is so small that districts are busy asking for an increment in terms of percentage,” Kyeyune said.
Adding that, in their view, increasing the threshold to 45 % percent.
“Honorarium up to now is Sh170,000. It is very small for a Councillor in a district, and it is taxed. Chairman LC I is Sh10,000,” Kyeyune cited.
Chipping in, Oboth cautioned that even with the increment, some districts would remain disadvantaged because they collect extremely little revenue in a financial year
“I have interacted with some speakers here in Kampala, Urban, to just know what a division speaker gets. It's staggering. Most of them are getting more than MPs…” he explained.
“Because their 20% is what is used to set a threshold for the whole country, which is unfair. There are places like Amudat; they have nothing to say,” Oboth added.
Concluding, Kyeyune said, “The biggest problem is that the fat is always taken away from the meat. You find town councils, municipalities you are talking about in those districts are the ones which own the resources. But when it comes to the district level, you find that they cannot use that money."