DP’s Richard Lumu, the MP for Mityana South has been granted leave by Parliament to draft a private members’ bill that seeks to have the leader of opposition elected by all opposition MPs in Parliament.
Lumu’s bill seeks to change the current status quo where the leader of the opposition is appointed by the biggest opposition party in Parliament.
If Lumu’s bill is eventually passed into law, it will mean that any opposition MP, even from a minority party, stands a chance of being elected leader of opposition as long as he/she is popular among colleagues.
Some could see the bill as an extension of the fight between the leadership of Parliament and the National Unity Platform (NUP) which is currently the biggest opposition party in Parliament.
Joel Ssenyonyi, the leader of opposition and a member of NUP mobilised some opposition MPs to stay away from the parliamentary sittings currently taking place in Gulu, something that has not gone down well with Speaker Anita Among.
Among said yesterday that she will “deal with” MPs who absconded from the Gulu sittings.
As Lumu moved the motion for the bill, there were some voices opposed to the move. But Among ruled in favour of Lumu asking the disgruntled MPs to reject Lumu’s Bill on second reading if they so wish.
“Much as we are sitting in Gulu, this is a normal sitting. And as I said, let us not act in anticipation, there is no fight. The law isn’t made for one person, today I may be the Leader of Opposition, tomorrow another person will be the leader, but I don’t see any fight in this thing and you can reject when it comes to the second reading. We shouldn’t deny a member his right which is enshrined in the constitution,” Among said.
Justifying the bill in Gulu, Lumu wondered why the Catholics can vote the Pope, Ugandans vote for a president, and MPs elects a speaker, while the leader of opposition and opposition whip are exempted from the same democratic principles he says they claim to profess to.
Michael Kakembo (Entebbe Municipality) while seconding Lumu’s motion argued that there is nothing wrong with opposition MPs voting their own leader, saying such a move will ensure the current culture of the leader of opposition thinking that they own all Opposition MPs.
“I am convinced that this move is going to give us more unity as the opposition, and respect for each other. Let us vote for our leaders, what is wrong with that? I am standing here to second this motion in good faith, it will help us, it will build us more because unity of the opposition means strength of the Opposition and respect for each other. I must participate in the electing of my leader as the opposition,” Kakembo said