If you lived in Kampala or its environs between the late 1980s to the early 90s and you owned a TV set, chances are high that you could have stumbled upon one of the most popular comedy shows at the time: Didi’s Comedy Show.
It aired on UTV and featured a comic character, Didi, a German detective, who relished in making blunder after blunder to bemusement of his audience.
Our MPs have not yet reached the comedic heights of Dieter Hallervorden who played the character of ‘Didi’ in the show but the theatrics witnessed so far during the process of signing the motion to censure Mathias Mpuuga and other commissioners would rival some of the German comedian.
With today (June 14) being the final day of collecting signatures for the censure, it looks highly unlikely that the motion movers, Theodore Ssekikubo and Patrick Nsamba will achieve their ultimate goal: To censure Mpuuga and three NRM commissioners over the Shs 1.7 billion they received as service award. Here is why:
Theatrics
The theatrics exhibited so far have reduced the process to a comedy show. Veronica Nanyondo, the Bukomansimbi Woman MP signed the motion only to withdraw later claiming she did not know what she was signing for. Then Asuman Basalirwa, the Bugiri Municipality MP, tried to steal the papers, claiming he needed to know the people who have signed because he is preparing a legal suit. He did this with a smile. Later, Ssemujju Nganda, Medard Sseggona and Muhammed Nsereko came out and poured cold water on the motion. They claimed the Shs 1.7 billion was passed by the MPs in Parliament. These theatrics have watered down the seriousness of the matter.
Numbers game
Assuming by the close of the day Ssekikubo and group have 177 signatures needed to force the matter on the order paper, this will just be the beginning of the hard work. Rule 110 (6) of the Parliamentary Rules of Procedure, provides for a vote on a motion to remove a commissioner to be supported by more than half of the voting MPs. The 11th Parliament has a total of 529 MPs who have voting rights. Therefore at least 265 MPs have to vote in its favour for it to succeed. This looks unlikely for now.
Speaker Anita Among
Everything in the 11th Parliament rises and falls by Anita Among, the powerful speaker. She will greatly determine the direction of the debate of the motion. She could even delay to give it time to be debated since it is not an emergency. Secondly, Ssekikubo’s motion indirectly attacks Among because she is the one that chaired the meeting where it was decided that Mpuuga and other commissioners be “appreciated” for their services. Why would Among indict herself by granting the motion the space and time?
President Museveni
It has been reported that President Museveni will meet NRM MPs to chart a way forward as far as the motion is concerned. Word in the corridors of power is that the president does not support the motion and the NRM MPs who appended their signatures to it could be forced to withdraw them. If this happens, the motion is dead in the water!
