Speaker Of Parliament Anita Among Suspends Absentee Mps from Attending Committees
The Speaker of Uganda’s Parliament, Anita Annet Among, has with immediate effect banned absentee lawmakers from attending committees. This comes on the back of a month-long boycott of plenary proceedings by Opposition MPs. during parliamentary session yesterday 22nd November 2023.
The Speaker of Uganda’s Parliament, Hon. Anita Annet Among chairing the plenary yesterday
The immediate prohibition of absentee lawmakers from participating in committees by Speaker Anita Annet Among follows a month-long boycott of plenary proceedings by Opposition MPs. On October 19, these legislators left Parliament, citing the government’s perceived indifference to human rights issues they had previously raised, such as alleged harassment of fishing communities and detentions without trial.
On October 19th, Opposition legislators walked out of Parliament over what they termed as the Government’s laissez-faire approach to human rights concerns, they had earlier raised.
The issues include alleged harassment of fishing communities by marine security and detentions without trial. Since then, these MPs have only attended plenary sessions to pay tribute to deceased former ministers but continued with committee business, per a position adopted by the Shadow Cabinet. During a plenary session, Speaker Among emphasized the new order, awaiting formal communication from absent members before granting permission.
Notably, she extended this prohibition to MPs training for the East Africa Parliamentary Games on December 7th 2023, directing the sports club chairman to exclude non-attending MPs from the games. Among justified her decision based on the need for value for money.
While chairing plenary on Wednesday, Speaker Among delivered the order.
“I am yet to receive letters from persons who are absent from the House formally and then I will either formally give permission or not depending on the circumstances,” she said.
“If members have decided to be out of the House, then that means they should also not be in the committees because a committee is an extension of the House.”
Furthermore, Among gave accountability committees with absentee chairpersons the latitude to vote in new office bearers and warned that plans are also in offing to expose MPs manipulating the attendance roll call.
“I want you to invoke Rule 203 (5) for you to continue transacting, and an elected member within your committee…. I am going to print that list of members who have logged in, stayed out there and pretended to be in the House and I will publish those names of people who don’t have integrity. You are either inside or out” she warned.
forthcoming East Africa Parliamentary Games due on December 7, 2023.
“I am also telling the chairman of the sports club in Parliament that those who are not in the House must be got out of the [games]. Whether they are goalkeepers or what,” directed the Speaker.
“If there are contentious issues on the floor of Parliament to be debated, they must be debated by both sides of the These stringent measures also apply to the MPs currently training for the House,” he said.
“Now, if members of the Opposition are not going to be in the House, how shall we debate and come up with policy for the development of the country?”
The Speaker responded: “What do you understand by Opposition? We have Opposition, they are here. The left side of the House is Opposition. I want to tell you members, the issues that are being raised were not caused by Parliament, Executive is the one supposed to answer.”
In response to reactions from MPs, including West Moyo MP Tom Aza Alero, who emphasized the importance of the Opposition in parliamentary debates, Speaker Among clarified that the raised issues weren’t caused by Parliament but should be addressed by the Executive.
Last Friday 17th November 2023, the Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Mathias Mpuuga, vowed to act against party whips of Opposition MPs attending plenary.
“I don’t want to speak for any party in the Opposition as long as you have not unsubscribed to the platform. Because if you have not subscribed, I even close your office in the corridor. You go to the NRMs chief whip to give you an office,” he said.
