Omoro County MP, Jacob Oulanyah is the official candidate for the ruling political party, National Resistance Movement (NRM) topmost policy organ, Central Executive Committee (CEC) after winning majority votes on Sunday morning, according to sources.
He defeated the outgoing speaker of parliament, Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga whom he deputized in both the 9th and 10th parliaments.
CEC convened on Saturday to decide on the party’s pick for the positions of Speaker and Deputy Speaker but didn’t make headways pushing the meeting to Sunday morning to reach a final decision.
A source says after heated deliberations on Sunday, a vote was put and majority members in CEC selected Oulanyah.
The NRM CEC is comprised of 27 members who include the National Chairperson, 1st National Vice Chairperson, 2nd National Vice Chairperson(female) and the 6(six) Vice Chairpersons representing the Regions of Uganda- East, Central, North,West, Kampala and Karamoja.
Others are Secretary General, National Treasurer, Deputy Secretary General, Deputy National Treasurer, Chairperson of NRM Parliamentary Caucus and all Chairpersons of the National Special League Committees, Chairpersons of Commissions, and such number of National Secretaries and Deputy National Secretaries.
Kadaga and Oulanyah are members of CEC as 2nd National Vice Chairperson(female) and Vice Chairperson Northern region respectively.
By publication of this story CEC was yet to decide on the deputy speaker position.
The NRM parliamentary caucus will this afternoon starting at 2pm convene at Statehouse, Entebbe, to scrutinize and deliberate on decision by CEC before all members of the 11th parliament sit for the first time on Monday to vote for both speaker and deputy speaker.
It is not yet clear where this decision on the speakership position leaves the earlier programme for the Caucus meeting which included MPs voting.
According to the programme, after the communication by the party’s national chairman, the Electoral Commission will present candidates for the two positions to Caucus.
The candidates will thereafter address the MPs before voting and declaration of results.
Oulanyah who on Friday formally expressed interest in the position before the party’s Electoral Commission, said moments after, he was to accept CEC’s decision even if it was not to be in his favor.
“CEC which I am a member of, will take the decision, they have taken decisions before and we have respected them, they will take a decision, we should all respect whatever decisions they come out with,” noted Oulanyah.
He said he was convinced that CEC will base its decision on what the country has witnessed in parliament over the years not what he termed as social media propaganda. He said that he is coming to parliament as speaker to “offer potential as opposed to history.”
“CEC will take a decision basing on history, yes, but what is the potential that comes on the table? The history we know, the potential we understand. Potential gives hope and it is that hope that I am sure will guide the CEC to give a chance to this 11th parliament to do better than before. I absolutely have no doubt that that is what will happen tomorrow,” explained Oulanyah.
“We want to see the story of the 11th the parliament be retold and rewritten, we want to see our school children and other Ugandans sing praises to the parliament of Uganda. The situation has not been good, the country has resented its members, we want that to change,” Oulanyah reiterated, adding that he seeks to restore confidence, respect and trust of the people in parliament.
According to Oulanyah parliament ought to focus on service delivery to the people and help them in the social economic transformation of their lives.
