Rebecca Kadaga: The visibility of women in Uganda increases
IT is more or less official now: Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga will be the Speaker of the Ninth Parliament; following the decision of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Parliamentary Caucus to endorse her unopposed.
Mary Karooro Okurut
IT is more or less official now: Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga will be the Speaker of the Ninth Parliament; following the decision of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Parliamentary Caucus to endorse her unopposed.
Such is the might of the NRM that with over two-thirds majority in Parliament, a decision taken in the caucus is as good as done. The caucus, sitting in State House Entebbe on May 15, also endorsed Omoro MP Jacob Oulanyah as Deputy Speaker.
The election of the two MPs was a sight to behold, as NRM internal democracy took centre stage in what proved to be a very interesting exercise. Sometimes—like during this very occasion on Sunday—I find myself disagreeing with some of the NRM party faithful; like those who said that because caucus proceedings are an ‘inside thing’, more or less like a family affair, there should be no press coverage.
My personal view is that it would have been very interesting to have this on television, for example, so that the whole nation can witness the beauty of NRM democracy and capture the historical and in this case, very dramatic moments in the party’s history. There are of course times when, understandably, the press should not be there; but not on this occasion.
Speaker Edward Ssekandi amply set the stage when, during his submissions on the election, he went historical, saying that in true parliamentary tradition those who want to be Speaker ideally do not campaign; they are simply chosen just because they are outstanding. And when chosen as Speaker, true adherents to legislative tradition would have to be physically dragged to the seat, because that they wanted to show reluctance to sit on it.
The President—also chairman of the NRM— clarified that the original reason they were dragged to the chair of Speaker was that at that time in Britain there was bad blood between the House of Commons (legislature) and the Monarchy (the executive, specifically the King).
The king had a fear that the Speaker could easily overshadow him; therefore the Speakers feared to take the seat lest the king, in a fit of misadvised suspicion, order that they be beheaded. So when Kadaga was elected unopposed, some people, namely Secretary General Amama Mbabazi and Bright Rwamirama symbolically went and grabbed her in a mock exercise and dragged her forward, as she girlishly fought back, resisting and exhibiting seeming reluctance.
The office of Speaker is no small thing. In public relations terms, the Speaker is the face and the image of Parliament. His reputation and character often mirror the Parliament —and vice versa. Functionally, in the most primary role, the Speaker is the President of the Legislature; the person who presides over Parliament.
The vibrancy of Parliament, the quality of the debates therein and the effectiveness of the august House hinges largely on who is Speaker and how they steer the ship through the stormy seas of legislative business and providing much-needed checks and balances in the organisational structure of the state.
But this is not all; for the Speaker could also play an executive function—as President of the country—in certain instances. Article 109 (5) of the Constitution provides that where the President and Vice-President are both unable to perform the functions of the office of the President, the Speaker shall perform those functions until the President or the Vice-President is able to perform them or until a new President assumes office. In short, the Speaker is the Number Three Citizen of Uganda.
The historic nature of Kadaga’s appointment lies partly in the fact that this is the very first time that Uganda is getting a female Speaker. More critically it is a huge indicator of the increasing importance of women in Uganda’s political domain.
It must be noted that Kadaga was not elected just because she is a woman and MPs were eager to ‘help’ women out in any form. We are not talking affirmative action here. She was elected for the simple reason that she is a competent person in her own right; able to articulate issues clearly and possessed of the maturity to steer the House in the right direction. She replaces the perfect gentleman in Speaker Edward Sekandi— a man known to be highly intelligent, measured and diplomatic, and with very firm resolve.
Well grounded in the law, Ssekandi has often taken time off to educate his colleagues in matters relating to law and parliamentary procedure when need has arisen. To many who have known Speakers around the world, Sekandi is rated one of the best. Personally, he has earned my eternal respect—and I speak for very many people.
The incoming Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulanyah is an accomplished advocate and legislator who served commendably as Chair of the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of the Seventh Parliament. He is a no-nonsense person, but has a keen sense of fairness; not allowing party sentiment to cloud his sense of fair play. Whatever assignment he gets, he takes it on very seriously. He is very meticulous in execution and there is no doubt he will measure up to the task.
We wish them well come Thursday, May 19 when the MPs go to the polls to elect Speaker and Deputy Speaker.
IT is more or less official now: Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga will be the Speaker of the Ninth Parliament; following the decision of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Parliamentary Caucus to endorse her unopposed.
Such is the might of the NRM that with over two-thirds majority in Parliament, a decision taken in the caucus is as good as done. The caucus, sitting in State House Entebbe on May 15, also endorsed Omoro MP Jacob Oulanyah as Deputy Speaker.
The election of the two MPs was a sight to behold, as NRM internal democracy took centre stage in what proved to be a very interesting exercise. Sometimes—like during this very occasion on Sunday—I find myself disagreeing with some of the NRM party faithful; like those who said that because caucus proceedings are an ‘inside thing’, more or less like a family affair, there should be no press coverage.
My personal view is that it would have been very interesting to have this on television, for example, so that the whole nation can witness the beauty of NRM democracy and capture the historical and in this case, very dramatic moments in the party’s history. There are of course times when, understandably, the press should not be there; but not on this occasion.
Speaker Edward Ssekandi amply set the stage when, during his submissions on the election, he went historical, saying that in true parliamentary tradition those who want to be Speaker ideally do not campaign; they are simply chosen just because they are outstanding. And when chosen as Speaker, true adherents to legislative tradition would have to be physically dragged to the seat, because that they wanted to show reluctance to sit on it.
The President—also chairman of the NRM— clarified that the original reason they were dragged to the chair of Speaker was that at that time in Britain there was bad blood between the House of Commons (legislature) and the Monarchy (the executive, specifically the King).
The king had a fear that the Speaker could easily overshadow him; therefore the Speakers feared to take the seat lest the king, in a fit of misadvised suspicion, order that they be beheaded. So when Kadaga was elected unopposed, some people, namely Secretary General Amama Mbabazi and Bright Rwamirama symbolically went and grabbed her in a mock exercise and dragged her forward, as she girlishly fought back, resisting and exhibiting seeming reluctance.
The office of Speaker is no small thing. In public relations terms, the Speaker is the face and the image of Parliament. His reputation and character often mirror the Parliament —and vice versa. Functionally, in the most primary role, the Speaker is the President of the Legislature; the person who presides over Parliament.
The vibrancy of Parliament, the quality of the debates therein and the effectiveness of the august House hinges largely on who is Speaker and how they steer the ship through the stormy seas of legislative business and providing much-needed checks and balances in the organisational structure of the state.
But this is not all; for the Speaker could also play an executive function—as President of the country—in certain instances. Article 109 (5) of the Constitution provides that where the President and Vice-President are both unable to perform the functions of the office of the President, the Speaker shall perform those functions until the President or the Vice-President is able to perform them or until a new President assumes office. In short, the Speaker is the Number Three Citizen of Uganda.
The historic nature of Kadaga’s appointment lies partly in the fact that this is the very first time that Uganda is getting a female Speaker. More critically it is a huge indicator of the increasing importance of women in Uganda’s political domain.
It must be noted that Kadaga was not elected just because she is a woman and MPs were eager to ‘help’ women out in any form. We are not talking affirmative action here. She was elected for the simple reason that she is a competent person in her own right; able to articulate issues clearly and possessed of the maturity to steer the House in the right direction. She replaces the perfect gentleman in Speaker Edward Sekandi— a man known to be highly intelligent, measured and diplomatic, and with very firm resolve.
Well grounded in the law, Ssekandi has often taken time off to educate his colleagues in matters relating to law and parliamentary procedure when need has arisen. To many who have known Speakers around the world, Sekandi is rated one of the best. Personally, he has earned my eternal respect—and I speak for very many people.
The incoming Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulanyah is an accomplished advocate and legislator who served commendably as Chair of the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of the Seventh Parliament. He is a no-nonsense person, but has a keen sense of fairness; not allowing party sentiment to cloud his sense of fair play. Whatever assignment he gets, he takes it on very seriously. He is very meticulous in execution and there is no doubt he will measure up to the task.
We wish them well come Thursday, May 19 when the MPs go to the polls to elect Speaker and Deputy Speaker.