Comments
@Ahmed, you are right. the legislature would ideally make her work easy by passing laws that would make it difficult for the president to raid the funds. However, with just over a month since the Uganda new parliament was sworn in, all indications are that the president is ready to influence what goes on there and there is little hope that this parliament will deliver much in terms of delivering pro people legislation. For every business in the main house, the President first hosts the NRM Caucus MPs at state house and they agree on decisions. NRM being the leading party with majority MPs, the main deliberations in the house appear more less as staged sessions since the rehearsals are niormally done at State house. There is even a suggestion to punish NRM MPs who disgaree with decisions of the caucus in the house.
With such a trend there is need to increase the civic competence of Ugandans so that MPs are constantly reminded of their obligation to present people's interests and not the president's interest. This will help a good out come regarding the impending Revenue management Bill that will be tabled in parliament any time soon.
MukalazI et al.
Guys, you all young men and women have your works cut out! May God protect all of you.
It seems the [Western] democratic principles become a joke in some parts of the world where we thought it had taken hold. Thus one- man -one achievement is a naive interpretation of democracy. Where's the separation of powers if the chief executive hobbles with (majority) of the parliamentarians and make decisions that impacts the nation, decisions that ought to be deliberated by parliament as it is reguired by law?
But to you Mukalazi and other future leaders, do not despair.
Look at the other side of the "coin".
In a complicated society such as Uganda and many other developing nations, where there's competing myriad of (tribal, ethnic, regional, religious, you name it ) forces vying for attention and inclusion, if you have a benign "dictator" such as a powerful chief executive who has the power to twist arms and make "troublesome" lawmakers to get in line in the interest of the whole country then, maybe, that may not be that all bad as compared to some disorderly parliaments where nothing substantive gets done.
What do you guys think?
Eng. Finoh, MPA
Mukalazi wrote:
" [Our] oil revenue management is very critical."
I have no doubt, Makalazi, that you meant "complicated"
And as such, you're quite right. And revenue management--who gets what and when and how much of the national coffers is what politics is all about. And you "fear" that minister, Ms. Maria Kiwanuka may not prevent the executive from raiding the oil revenue is justified. But it appened here too! Executives can be likened to little kids in a candy store when it comes to seeing money laying about without immediate purpose. Remember, an executive/government's public policy is a measure of revenue allocations and Maria is working at the pleasure of the chief executive.
Therfore, Maria by herself cannot prevent the tampering of the oil revenue by the executive, no matter how politically savvy she is. What she will need is supprt from the legislators. They should be her staunchest supporters, but even at that, she must not be seen as openly opposing the chief executive. The legislators/parliamentarians must do her work of safe guarding the oil revenue.
Can you imagine,anywhere in the world the Finance Minister openly satnding up to oppose a president? I now of one that did and he was history!