Can KCC councillors stop city take-over by govt?
KAMPALA City Councillors are up in arms over the intended take-over of the city by the central government. Although they have vowed to go to court if the bill is passed into law, legally, there is nothing they can do to stop the Government from moving the bill in Parliament.
By Joshua Kato
KAMPALA City Councillors are up in arms over the intended take-over of the city by the central government. Although they have vowed to go to court if the bill is passed into law, legally, there is nothing they can do to stop the Government from moving the bill in Parliament.
The councillors have called upon their colleagues in various divisions of Kampala to ‘rebel’ against the proposal. The councillors recently passed a motion giving themselves sh5m to go out to “consult†the population about the Government’s proposed take-over. But according to legal experts, allocation of this money amounts to abuse of public funds.
Legally, the central government is supposed to govern the city. At least this is what is written in Clause five of the 1995 Constitution.
“This decision was made during the 2005 Constitutional amendments and we are implementing what the constitutional provision says,†Hope Mwesigye, the Minister of State for Local Government, says.
However, the clause is silent on various issues, including how the central government should govern the city.
“You cannot get a court order to stop the Government from setting up a policy,†says lawyer Erias Lukwago.
KCC leaders claim it would be wrong for the Government to pass the bill without consulting the population. According to the council speaker and lawyer Shifrah Lukwago, failure by the Government to consult the population is a ‘hole’ in the bill that councillors and others who are against the move, can exploit.
“Article 1 of the Constitution says power belongs to the people. But in this case, the people’s power is being usurped,†Shifrah says.
However, Mwesigye says the councillors were met several times before the proposal was made. This means their challenge, on the basis that they were never consulted, does not hold water.
Another option is to put the issue to a referendum, before it is implemented. According to the Constitution, the people of a particular locality have powers to petition for a referendum over certain issues. “And results of a referendum are binding to all departments of government,†Lukwago says.
The motion by the councillors to get sh5m to mobilise the population against the Government’s take-over of the city, was perhaps done with calling for a referendum in mind.
Surprisingly, Erias Lukwago, who is also fighting against the take over, says the sh5m was not necessary.
“This justifies the Government’s take-over of the city, which includes financial mismanagement,†Lukwago observes.
Their action, according to Mwesigye, amounts to contempt of the Constitution.
“They are fighting the Constitution. What they are doing is illegal,†Mwesigye says.
However, David Mayinja Tebusweke, a city advocate, says: “It is not that everything that was put in the Constitution cannot be changed. We had a constitutional amendment in 2005, in which among other things, the untried article on term limits was removed. In this case, if the Government listens to the voices of the people, they can remove the clause about the take-over of Kampala.â€
The other option for the councillors is to influence debate over the issue in Parliament. When the bill is taken to the committee stage, councillors and other people with opposing views will be invited to voice them out. This is when they will come out and either oppose or support it.
However, given the advantage of numbers that the Government enjoys in Parliament, the anti-Kampala take-over agitators might not be successful.
The councillors can only go to court after the bill is passed and only if the Government contravenes some of the democratic provisions. “For example, if the people’s right to vote for their leaders is contravened. The Constitution says people have to vote for their leaders through universal adult suffrage. If the proposal passes without this right being recognised, then people can go to court,†Lukwago says.
According to the proposal, councillors will be elected by the population, while the mayor will be elected by the councillors from among themselves.
“There is no reason why the people of Kampala should be disenfranchised. This is what I am fighting against,†Lukwago said.
KAMPALA City Councillors are up in arms over the intended take-over of the city by the central government. Although they have vowed to go to court if the bill is passed into law, legally, there is nothing they can do to stop the Government from moving the bill in Parliament.
The councillors have called upon their colleagues in various divisions of Kampala to ‘rebel’ against the proposal. The councillors recently passed a motion giving themselves sh5m to go out to “consult†the population about the Government’s proposed take-over. But according to legal experts, allocation of this money amounts to abuse of public funds.
Legally, the central government is supposed to govern the city. At least this is what is written in Clause five of the 1995 Constitution.
“This decision was made during the 2005 Constitutional amendments and we are implementing what the constitutional provision says,†Hope Mwesigye, the Minister of State for Local Government, says.
However, the clause is silent on various issues, including how the central government should govern the city.
“You cannot get a court order to stop the Government from setting up a policy,†says lawyer Erias Lukwago.
KCC leaders claim it would be wrong for the Government to pass the bill without consulting the population. According to the council speaker and lawyer Shifrah Lukwago, failure by the Government to consult the population is a ‘hole’ in the bill that councillors and others who are against the move, can exploit.
“Article 1 of the Constitution says power belongs to the people. But in this case, the people’s power is being usurped,†Shifrah says.
However, Mwesigye says the councillors were met several times before the proposal was made. This means their challenge, on the basis that they were never consulted, does not hold water.
Another option is to put the issue to a referendum, before it is implemented. According to the Constitution, the people of a particular locality have powers to petition for a referendum over certain issues. “And results of a referendum are binding to all departments of government,†Lukwago says.
The motion by the councillors to get sh5m to mobilise the population against the Government’s take-over of the city, was perhaps done with calling for a referendum in mind.
Surprisingly, Erias Lukwago, who is also fighting against the take over, says the sh5m was not necessary.
“This justifies the Government’s take-over of the city, which includes financial mismanagement,†Lukwago observes.
Their action, according to Mwesigye, amounts to contempt of the Constitution.
“They are fighting the Constitution. What they are doing is illegal,†Mwesigye says.
However, David Mayinja Tebusweke, a city advocate, says: “It is not that everything that was put in the Constitution cannot be changed. We had a constitutional amendment in 2005, in which among other things, the untried article on term limits was removed. In this case, if the Government listens to the voices of the people, they can remove the clause about the take-over of Kampala.â€
The other option for the councillors is to influence debate over the issue in Parliament. When the bill is taken to the committee stage, councillors and other people with opposing views will be invited to voice them out. This is when they will come out and either oppose or support it.
However, given the advantage of numbers that the Government enjoys in Parliament, the anti-Kampala take-over agitators might not be successful.
The councillors can only go to court after the bill is passed and only if the Government contravenes some of the democratic provisions. “For example, if the people’s right to vote for their leaders is contravened. The Constitution says people have to vote for their leaders through universal adult suffrage. If the proposal passes without this right being recognised, then people can go to court,†Lukwago says.
According to the proposal, councillors will be elected by the population, while the mayor will be elected by the councillors from among themselves.
“There is no reason why the people of Kampala should be disenfranchised. This is what I am fighting against,†Lukwago said.