Richard Lumu, the Member of Parliament for Mityana South, has been given permission by the government to introduce a Private Member’s Bill in Parliament. This bill will allow members of the opposition in Parliament to elect their own Leader of the Opposition from among themselves.
In 2005, Uganda switched from the Movement political system to a multiparty system after a national vote. With this change, the 1995 Constitution was amended to create the position of Leader of the Opposition in Parliament. In 2006, another law, the Administration of Parliament Act, was updated to define this role more clearly.
Lumu shared that he has finally received the official financial approval from the Ministry of Finance, though some of his original ideas were removed. For instance, his proposal to add another commissioner to Parliament was rejected.
In August 2024, Parliament gave Lumu permission to proceed with his plan. His bill would require the main opposition party to suggest three names, and MPs would vote to choose one as the Leader of the Opposition.
Lumu also had plans to change the Constitution, but he chose to introduce them later to avoid past mistakes. He mentioned that he didn’t want to combine too many changes at once, referring to a previous challenge faced by another MP, Medard Sseggona.
Originally, Lumu also wanted to add more members to the Parliamentary Commission to represent smaller political parties. Currently, the ruling NRM Party has three seats, and the main opposition party has one. However, the Ministry did not approve this suggestion, as it would increase the costs for the government.
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