This is not the first time that the Opposition in Parliament is moving to censure different Ministers. In the past parliaments, MPs succeeded once and had the very Jim Muhwezi sacked from cabinet, but subsequent attempts to censure ministers after the restoration of parties have collapsed after failing to raise the required signatures due to insufficient opposition number in parliament.
Sixty Opposition legislators have so far signed on a motion seeking to censure the Minister
of Security, Maj. Gen. Jim Muhwezi for allegedly abdicating responsibility in
the face of torture of Ugandans by security officers.
Joyce Bagala, the
Shadow Minister of Information and Anti-Corruption revealed the figure on
Thursday saying that more than 60 MPs have appended their signatures on a
motion deposited at the office of the Sergeant –at- Arms.
Bagala says that they
are still hopeful that the required 176 signatures will be raised before the 10
days provided for under the Parliament Rules of Procedure elapse. She explained
that a section of Opposition MPs are currently out of the country and expected
back soon.
Luganda
//Cue in: “ababaka
ba palamenti…//
Cue out:…bweyimiridde.”//
The Opposition in Parliament started signing a
motion seeking to censure Minister Muhwezi on 10th
February and the 10 working days provided for under the Parliament Rules of Procedure elapse next week on Thursday
24th February.
Out of the total 529 MPs in the 11th
Parliament, the Opposition requires MP 176 signatures for the censure motion to
succeed. The ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) Party enjoys
majority numbers with 336 MPs while all Opposition Political Parties with
representation in Parliament have 109 MP. The rest are Independent MPs.
Fred Kayondo, the Mukono South MP says that this is
a challenge for the Opposition in parliament. He questioned why a section of
Opposition MPs have not yet appended their signatures on the censure motion
fronted by the Leader of Opposition, Mathias Mpuuga.
Luganda
//Cue in: “temusobola gamba…//
Cue out:…baliwa?”//
The Opposition
revealed the move to censure Muwhezi on Tuesday last week as their next action
being taken as part of a two weeks boycott of plenary sittings that was
declared last week on Thursday.
“We have resolved to
invoke rule 109 of our Rules of Procedure and Article 118 of the Constitution
to censure the Minister of Security because over the last one and half years government has been receiving complaints from the public…I laid documents in Parliament in
his presence over torture, forced disappearances, murders and he did not
respond,” Mpuuga told journalists then.
An official notice of censure seen by Uganda Radio
Network- URN was lodged to the Clerk of Parliament, Speaker, and Deputy
Speaker’s office on 8th February. Mpuuga accuses the Minister of Security of
totally abdicating his responsibility, breach of public duty, and that the
Opposition finds him unfit to continue being in occupation of a sensitive
public office.
Mpuuga’s notice indicates that Minister Muhwezi
has violated the oath of allegiance and office by condoning human rights
violations including enforced disappearances, torture while in detention, and
extrajudicial killings.
English //Cue in: “there
are people…//
Cue out:…of the sergeant.”//
In the past few weeks, several pictures and videos
of citizens have been circulating on different media with reported torture by
security forces while in detention. Recent cases Include those of Novelist Kakwenza Rukirabasaija and Samuel Masereka, the National Unity Platform –NUP
Coordinator in Kasese district who displayed torture marks on their bodies
inflicted under detention.
This is not the first time that the Opposition in Parliament is moving to censure different Ministers. In the past parliaments, MPs succeeded once and had the very Jim Muhwezi sacked from cabinet, but subsequent attempts to censure ministers after the restoration of parties have collapsed after failing to raise the required signatures due to insufficient opposition number in parliament.
In 2013, a motion seeking to censure the then Kampala Minister Frank Tumwebaze flopped after only 20 MPs signed out of the
required 125 for the censure to go ahead during the 9th Parliament.
Another censure motion against former Security
Minister, Gen. Elly Tumwine collapsed after a section of Members of Parliament
faulted their colleagues for shying away from the censure process. Tumwine was
being accused of contempt of Parliament.
