Africa-Press – Uganda. The Constitutional Court has dismissed a petition challenging the authority of National Resistance Movement (NRM) Chairman and President, Museveni, to appoint the party’s Secretary General, Treasurer, and their deputies.
In 2014, the ruling party amended its constitution to eliminate the election of the secretary general, treasurer, and their deputies and gave powers to the party chairman to appoint them.
Aggrieved over the same, a party member, Hamzah Kagimu petitioned the Constitutional Court in 2018 arguing that the appointment, instead of election of those above holders of the above positions contravenes the constitution.
However, in a four-to-one decision, the Constitutional Court ruled that the appointment of the four office bearers to the National Conference, National Executive Council and the Central Executive Committee should be construed as a matter of internal organisation for the efficient coordination of activities of the ruling party.
“If they were to be appointed to the respective committees with full rights as other elected members, it would be in breach of Article 71(d) of the Constitution,” Justice Moses Kazibwe said in the lead judgment.
He explained that the appointment of the four members of the NRM secretariat to sit on the three organs is to enable them to fulfill their mandate which is largely administrative and not political.
Justice Moses Kazibwe argued that while all members of the NRM national conference are elected by party members at different levels throughout the country and from them are elected members of the National Executive Committee, only four members with a restricted mandate on account of their positions at the secretariat are appointed to the committee.
“The four members appointed to sit on the three organs of the second respondent are proportionally insignificant given the composition of the respective organs. Given that they have no voting rights further reduces their significance in the respective organs of the second respondent.”
In his petition, Kagimu said it was unconstitutional for the NRM Secretary General, Deputy Secretary General, Treasurer and Deputy Treasurers to be appointed ex-officio members.
Howe the court ruled that there is no contravention with the law in this.
“The National Secretariat is not listed as one of the organs of the NRM and is not therefore affected by the requirements of Article 71 (d) of the Constitution. The petitioner’s argument to the effect that the appointment to the four positions by the party national chairman is unconstitutional is therefore devoid of merit,” the court ruled.
The court also threw out the complaint by Kagimu that the appointment of the holders of the four positions denies party members the right to elect them and that by virtue of their being appointed, the four serve the interests of the party chairman.
The court ruled that the complaint about appointed office bearers serving the interests of the national party chairman should be considered within the internal structures of the NRM and not for constitutional interpretation.
“All in all, I find no merit in the petition and it is hereby dismissed.”
The court however directed that each party meets its costs since the petition raised matters of national importance relating to the governance of political parties in this country.
Other justices Hellen Obura, Dr Asa Mugenyi, and Eva Luswata also ruled in the same direction, dismissing the petition but Justice Fredrick Egonda-Ntende dissented.
The NRM national chairman, President Museveni and the ruling party were represented by Usaama Sebuufu of K and K advocates.
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