Luttamaguzi: NRM Caucusing on Mobile Money Tax Undermines Parliament

Nakaseke South Member of Parliament (MP), Paulsen Luttamaguzi Semakula has noted that the incident that happened last week in Parliament where NRM MPs were mobilized to fail the voting on mobile money tax was an indication that the independence of Parliament remains in question.

Luttamaguzi said that it is on record that several decisions that need Parliament legislation are tabled before the NRM caucus first and decided upon which leaves Parliament as just a rubber stamp of NRM.

Voting on the Excise duty amendment Bill flopped last week after members failed to raise the required quorum of 154, only 97 MPs were in the house out of over 450 legislators.

It is alleged that there are key legislators in Parliament including Commissioner Peter Ogwang and the State Minister for Finance, Evelyn Anite who called on their colleagues to move out of plenary when time for voting on the Bill reached.

The NRM MPs are expected to convene this evening at 4pm at State House Entebbe over the same matter that is likely to be voted on tomorrow in plenary sitting.

Now, the Nakaseke South MP Luttamaguzi Semakula, the main opponent of the Mobile Money tax Bill and Manjiya County’s John Baptist Nambeshe have told the media at Parliament that they are determined to fight on. However, they were worried that their colleagues in NRM might be compromised by the President who they are going to meet today.

The two insist that this tax should be thrown out of Parliament and have vowed to fight and fail the tax.

“With my colleagues, we still stand with the people and we shall fight the tax because it is not necessary and so repressive,” Lutamaguzi said.

In a new Excise Duty amendment Bill, the government wants to have the tax on Mobile money reduced from the current 1% on all transactions to 0.5 percent only on withdrawals.

The minority report opposing the tax was signed by three legislators including Semakula Luttamaguzi, Patrick Isiagi of Kachumbala county in Bukedea district and Moses Walyomu of Kagoma County in Jinja.