AGE LIMIT BILL FINALLY PRESENTED BEFORE PARLIAMENT

By; Newsroom

A one-sided parliament has this afternoon approved the presentation of the controversial bill seeking to lift the presidential age limit.

The decision came after the Igara West Member of Parliament Raphael Magyezi sought leave of parliament to introduce a private members’ bill entitled ‘The Constitutional (Amendment) Bill, 2017. In the bill, Magyezi seeks to amend Article 102 (b) of the constitution in order to change the presidential age limit, now capped at 75.

The move would allow President Yoweri Museveni to seek reelection when his term of office ends in 2021. Under the current provision, Museveni would be ineligible to contest for the presidency.

Magyezi also seeks to amend Article 104 (6) to increase the number of days within which the electoral commission is required to hold a fresh election where a presidential election is annulled from twenty days to sixty days from the date of the annulment.

Following Magyezi’s presentation, Buzaaya County MP Isaac Musumba immediately asked Speaker Kadaga to put a question on Magyezi’s motion without a debate by MPs. Efforts by Fort portal Municipality MP Alex Ruhunda to stop this move proved futile.

But he was put to order by Isingiro North MP Bright Rwamirama who asked the Speaker to first dispose of Musumba’s motion before anything else.

Kadaga put a question to Magyezi’s motion with NRM MPs all responding in approval of a bill to be presented before parliament. The motion was seconded by Jinja Municipality West MP Moses Balyeku, Kyaka South MP Jackson Karugaba Kafuuzi and the Amolatar Woman MP Doreen Amule.

The presentation came shortly after ugly scenes of fighting and forceful eviction of 25 suspended legislators comprising mainly of members of the opposition. They were accused of breaching the Rules of Procedure of parliament and paralyzing parliamentary business a day earlier.