Lwemiyaga County MP Theodore Sssekikubo has lambasted opposition Members of Parliament for evading the exercise of censuring corrupt parliamentary commissioners.
Last week, Ssekikubo and others started a campaign of censuring the four commissioners Mathias Mpuuga, Solomon Sirwany, Esther Afoyochan, and Prosy Akampulira. The legislators accuse their commissioners of corruption and want them to relinquish their positions.
Among the accusations is that the Commissioners gave themselves a service award of four hundred million each, with Mpuuga taking five hundred million. They are also accused of allotting themselves 23 million shillings monthly salary without involving Parliament. Ssekikubo wants them to resign or be forced to resign by the house over this “gross corruption.”
For a motion to be tabled for their censure, at least 117 signatures of the 556 members of the house must be collected. But Ssekikubo is frustrated; “where are those MPs who came to parliament chest thumping that they are going to fight for accountability and transparency?”
He goes on to scold the opposition for being the failures of the process; “by the way, if you have noted, it is the NRM MPs who are at the forefront of this. The opposition are wobbling, they are looking through the windows and, in the corridors, they run very fast. They aren’t putting their heads high.”
The National Unity Platform (NUP) ran into bad blood with Mathias Mpuuga, an MP it recommended to the Commission when this issue became known on social media. They castigated his behavior and wrote to the Speaker recalling him. Then, the Speaker disregarded their letter of recall and assured them that the party has no locus to recall a commissioner, even when it is the one that recommends him to the Commission.
Mpuuga has since been dragged in the mud politically and his party president has dismissed him from the position of Deputy President for the central region. He also lost his position as Leader of Opposition in Parliament to Joel Ssenyonyi, the party spokesperson.
President Yoweri Museveni earlier this month wrote to the Attorney General to probe these service awards. “… Such conduct is conduct is contrary to the revolutionary principles of the NRM. When we were fighting Obote and Amin, we used to call it primitive accumulation of wealth. Officials under those regimes were trying to get for themselves as much money as possible, in the quickest time possible, in the easiest way possible.”
Hiding behind the Speaker
Ssekikubo is disappointed that the besieged commissioners are now hiding behind the Speaker. “We are disappointed that those persons are now trying to draw in the Speaker. The Speaker is not part of this motion because there are other processes that can suffice.”
He says that they are hiding behind her to save them like he saved Mpuuga from the NUP. Then, the Speaker quoting Section 2 of the Administration of Parliament and Rule 11 of the Rules of Procedure, said that Commissioners are voted for by Parliament and not the parties.
To censure a commissioner, a motion to impeach the commissioner must be filed and signed by a minimum of 117 members. The motion must be supported by more than half of the voting members of parliament. Parliament has 529 MPs with voting rights and thus 265 votes must be marshalled to impeach a commissioner. The commissioner must be given a chance to defend themselves though.
As it stands, Ssekikubo is stuck at stage 1.
Who are Parliamentary Commissioners and what do they do?
The Parliamentary Commission consists of the Speakers, Leader of Government Business, Leader of Opposition, Minister of Finance, Backbench members, and the clerk to parliament. The four members sought after in Ssekikubo’s motion are the backbench members.
The commission maintains discipline of the house, takes care of the welfare of parliamentarians and parliamentary staff, prepares the house’s budget and agrees on the allowances and privileges of parliamentarians.
