ANALYSIS: Proposed KCCA law

When Tumwebaze tabled the bill for the first time, he said it was intended to strengthen and streamline the governance of the city, by drawing clear lines of distinction between roles of policy makers and administrators. He said the apparent fusion of roles had contributed largely to the governance problem.

“These colleagues of mine including the former Lord Mayor, Erias Lukwago are now raving and ranting about the Bill as if it pertains to a person in the name of Erias Lukwago,” he said, “This Bill like I have stated hereinabove deals with matters to do with general governance questions in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda.”

Tumwebaze said in December 2014, the Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi made an assurance parliament that government would deal with the governance question in Kampala through the amendment of the law. This call by parliament to have the law amendment, he added, had been re-echoed by many other legitimate stake holders of Kampala.

Tumwebaze added that in KCCA, the Central Government policy takes precedence. “That is why the minister responsible for the capital city is given veto powers under section 79,” Tumwebaze said, “This is what Erias Lukwago has never appreciated, but it’s the bitter truth.”

Lukwago and his supporters say, however, it is a continuation of government’s witch-hunt against Lukwago. This fight which started as soon as he assumed office in 2011 culminated in 2013 when Lukwago was locked out of office inspite of court orders quashing his alleged impeachment.

But on February 24, Lukwago was re-elected as Lord Mayor with a whopping 75% of the vote.

Clashes inevitable

Since then the once vibrant KCCA Executive Director Jennifer Musisi has seemingly taken a back seat and many say she has become demoralized since President Yoweri Museveni attributed to her the dismal performance of the NRM party in Kampala.

Sources say when her then-Deputy Judith Tukahirwa resigned, Musisi also tendered in her resignation but the President rejected it.

A legal expert, who declined to be named given his involvement in the law making process, told The Independent that when the current KCCA act was enacted, it envisioned an authority of technocrats that did not have politicians.

“When the original Bill was taken to Parliament, the politicians, after benchmarking, struck out the technocrats,” the lawyer said, “Former Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi argued that you can’t have a law in Kampala that leaves out the political wing because it disenfranchises the Kampala Voters.”

That is where the problem originates from, he added, in a bid to have both the technocrats and the politicians catered for in the law they created a problem of having two heads with equal powers.

“Even if you remove Musisi and Lukwago and put two other individuals, even if they are both from the ruling party,” the lawyer added, “the clashes between the ED and the mayor would occur. As you can see, the latest clashes are no longer between Lukwago and Musisi but between Lukwago and Beti Kamya.”

Therefore, he noted, the issue is not the individuals, the issue is the law. “The ED and the mayor have similar powers,” the lawyer added, “And to solve the impasse requires to change the powers of the mayor clarify who, between him and the ED has the powers to do what.”

Bruhan Byaruhanga, the Councillor Kyambogo institutions, who led the motion to impeach Lukwago said that those complaining about the Bill are ignorant or simply feigning ignorance because the need to amend this law is obvious to everyone.

“We all agree that there are defects within the law and there is no other way of curing those defects without amending it,” he noted, “Instead of complaining about the Bill, the people who have issues with it should propose better ways of solving the impasse.”

He noted that although he doesn’t agree with the proposed clause on the election of the Lord Mayor, he thinks an amendment to the KCCA Act is not only important but inevitable.

“I think the people of Kampala shouldn’t be denied their constitutional right of electing their mayor because Article 1 of the constitution is very clear- Power belongs to the people,” he said, “What I think should be done, and I have made this argument before, is to elect a Speaker and deputy from among the councilors for impartiality.”

Some say the opposition should not be worried about the law because it has the majority in the council. NRM has three councilors out of the 30 directly elected. FDC won the most slots, 16 councilors, DP have two, and the rest are independents.

But it possibly is not lost on Lukwago and the opposition that even if NRM had only 16 councilors in the last council, 29 councilors voted to impeach Lukwago in 2013 even as court had blocked the proceedings. Only three voted to save Lukwago amidst allegation that Museveni, at meetings in State House, had induced the rest to ditch him.

****