BY JOHN SEMAKULA

A recent directive to local governments to submit proposals for the creation of new constituencies has created a lot of anxiety in districts, sending councillors to piece up small administrative units into constituencies

If the proposals are successful, the number of MPs in the 10th Parliament could reach 600.

Since the minister issued the directive to district councils to propose new constituencies on April 14, the district councillors have been looking around for patches to merge in the spirit of creating the required new constituencies. The anxiety cuts across the different parts of the country.

In Bukomansimbi, the chairman, Mohamed Katerega, told Sunday Vision that the Ministry of Local Government confi rmed the creation of two new constituencies from Bukomansimbi County.

Katerega said they submitted the application to the ministry in 2003 and that approval was made just recently.

“We were summoned by the ministry to defend the application and as of now we have Bukomansimbi West and Bukomansimbi East constituencies created from Bukomansimbi County,” Katerega said.

A source in the district revealed that two prominent NRM supporters and political rivals, Morris Peter Kagimu and Idi Lubyayi Kisiki, have already shown interest in contesting in the different constituencies.

In Sembabule, the Woman MP, Hanifah Kawooya, is said to be contemplating to shift to the new constituency to be curved out of Mawogola County after merging Rwebitakuli and Matete.

Mawogola County is currently represented by foreign affairs minister Sam Kutesa.

Sembabule district resident commissioner Joseph Ssekabito has also shown interest in representing the people of the proposed new constituency.

“We are now waiting for Kutesa to return to the constituency to discuss potential National Resistance Movement (NRM) party candidate to front in the new constituency,” one of the local leaders in Mawogola said.

After receiving the minister’s directive, the Tororo district council set the ball rolling last week when councillors endorsed the proposal for the creation of three new constituencies of about 70,000 people.

Tororo has already got four county constituencies, Tororo Municipality, Tororo County, West Budama South and West Budama North.

What is not clear is whether district councillors have found time to consult their constituents before making the critical recommendations.

The proposed new constituencies in Tororo include Tororo County

South, Tororo County North and West Budama North East.

Tororo County South has a population of 76,576 people; Tororo County North 83,438 while West Budama Central has got 71,000 residents.

Kira town council mayor Mamerito Mugerwa also told Sunday Vision that they were eagerly waiting for the ministry to announce the creation of Kira

municipality constituency.“Ours is long overdue because

we submitted the proposal to become a constituency long ago after the district council endorsed the resolution,” Mamerito said.

He added that with a population of 350,000 people, Kira is even fi t to be granted a district status.

Sources told Sunday Vision that the yardstick Tororo used to determine the population for creating the new constituencies is likely to be adopted by other districts.

But if 70,000 is the population considered per constituency, Uganda, with a total population of 34.9 million people, could post up to 571 new constituencies in the 10th Parliament.

Already there are constituencies with less than 30,000 people, like Bujumba and Kyamuswa counties in Kalangala district.

Most of the municipalities also have less than 40,000 people.

During the recent tours, President Yoweri Museveni conducted across the country to stimulate the population into wealth creation, he received calls from local leaders to create new constituencies and promised to act.

Those advocating for new constituencies believe that if granted they will improve capacity of local leaders to monitor the government programmes.

Gomba Woman MP Nakato Kyabangi Katusiime told Sunday Vision that the shoddy work which has been going on in her district will come to the end with the creation of another constituency in her district.

But those against the project, like Makerere University Political don, Prof. Mwambutsya Ndebesa, say it will make administration more costly for Ugandan.

Ndebesa noted that considering the ratio of MPs and Uganda’s population, creation of new constituencies will make the country have the biggest number of legislators in the world.

He also argues that the decision to create more constituencies portrays the failure of the Government to listen to the point of reason.

“We have been complaining about the increasing cost of public expenditure and to the contrary, the Government is increasing it,” Ndebesa said.

He further observed that new

constituencies created during election periods rekindle the electioneering process during Obote II government.

He says the faults on the 1980 elections organised by the Uganda People’s Congress government under president Milton Obote sparked doom for Uganda, forcing 27 youthful Ugandans led by President Museveni to wage war against his government. The war ended with the overthrow of Obote and the coming to power of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) government in 1986.

Ndebesa also noted that creating new constituencies now is going to confuse the Electoral Commission whose road map had been hinged on the existing constituencies.

But the Electoral Commission managers insist that they are ready to execute their mandate even in the newly created constituencies.

Ndebesa argues further that there is no rationale of creating new constituencies when almost 20% of the MPs do not contribute in the house.

He noted that due to vote logic, Uganda is going to have a very huge Parliament that will not be effective at all.

“Democracy is going to become very expensive for Ugandans,” Ndebesa said. “I will not get surprised when one of these days a peasant comes out to ask that democracy be scrapped the way slave trade and colonialism were.”

In a situation where Parliament has been struggling to fi nd offi ce space for some of the current legislators, a bigger Parliament will automatically strain the parliamentary budget and spell doom.

POLITICS36 SUNDAY VISION, May 3, 2015

MPs attending a parliamentary session. There are currently 386 MPs and more are expected after the creation of new constituencies

District councils push for

“If representation in Parliament was to be effective each district should be sending two MPs, a man and woman, to atleast make the total number of MPs stand at 224 for the 112 districts”

MIRIA MATEMBE

municipality constituency. Those advocating for new

Each MP in Uganda earns a sh22m monthly salary The salary translates to sh264m (for each MP) annually At the end of the five-year term, each MP will have earned sh1.3b For 375 MPs in the 9th Parliament, the tax payer pays sh99b annually in their salaries At the expiry of the five year term next year, the 386 MPs will have drawn sh345.76b from the Consolidated Fund

THE COST OF MPS

POLITICS 37SUNDAY VISION , May 3, 2015

creation of 600 MP slotsConstitutional mandate Creation of new constituencies is Constitutional.

Article 63 of the Constitution mandates the Electoral Commission to demarcate constituencies, taking into consideration the population quota. That figure is arrived at by dividing the population by the number of constituencies.

The population quarter is however not specific, so different people follow precedents and other guidelines.

The article also states that the number of inhabitants of a constituency may be greater or less than the population quota in order to take account of means of communication, geographical features, density of population, area and boundaries of districts.

distriCts needs two mPsFormer ethics minister, Miria Matembe told Sunday Vision that if representation in Parliament was to be effective, each district

should be sending two MPs, a man and woman, to at least make the total number of MPs stand at 224 for the 112 districts. But at the moment, she said, representation in Parliament serves interests of political parties.

But what is clear now is that the campaign against huge administrative costs is not about to stop politicians pushing for creation of new constituencies.

FinanCial imPliCationsIt is undeniable that the creation of more constituencies is necessary as it is in line with the tenets of democracy.

The project is also necessary in order to increase services to the people. However, the cost of maintaining the Ugandan MP could become unsustainable.

Sh345.76b is worth paying an enhanced monthly salary of sh1m to 345,760 primary school teachers across the country. A primary school teacher earns about

sh400,000 per month. Each Member of Parliament is

also entitled to a chain of other benefits including a brand new car and health insurance catered for by the tax payer’s money.

At the beginning of the current term, every MP was given sh103m for official cars. The amount spent on MPs’ cars translated to sh38.6b for 375 MPs.

The administrative costs have been increasing by the year pushing a cross section of Ugandans to call for the slashing of some political offices.

Besides MPs, Uganda has got thousands of district counselors who are increasingly demanding for better pay.

With that expenditure, Parliament is set to become the most expensive in the region in terms maintenance. Kenya has 349 representing a population of 44 million people. Tanzania has 357for a population of 49 million people.

COUNTRY Population No. ofMPs

No. ofMPsper MP

GDP per MP

Guinea-Bissau 100 13,454 19

72 4,990 20

Comoros 33 24,181 25

210 61,971 29

65 12,587 35

100 38,951 36

104 50,878 38

124 40,136 41

118 74,570 43

500 143,425 50

53 25,673 65

194 76,809 71

31 2,709 72

170 48,591 81

250 85,588 95

114 88,227 100

113 139,210 102

160 90,732 111

349 126,182 118

153 28,537 119

386 87,839 123

56 56,803 126

155 66,640 126

COUNTRY Population per MP

GDP per MP

160 137,078 127

150 87,284 145

150 85,701 167

80 146,121 171

100 16,220 172

547 135,134 173

83 115,648 176

357 120,974 178

450 68,653 197

111 126,281 198

78 26,923 201

121 12,190 203

180 97,021 262

70 17,614 275

228 106,286 328

462 80,303 439

63 32,211 471

325 100,444 500

70 294,529 515

220 84,081 525

508 150,983 1,021

360 388,898 1,148

400 126,466 1,387

Parliaments with higher GDP per MP are considered more economical

graPhiCs by timothy katuramu

CONSTITUENCY POPULATIONAringa County 485,582Busiro County East 462,635Kyadondo County East 460,161Kyadondo County North 368,694Kyadondo County South 284,067Kyaka County 277,379Kibale County 275,881Kibanda County 268,188Buhaguzi County 265,228Kumi County 258,073Busiki County 253,260Burahya County 248,648Soroti County 247,702Ayivu County 246,196Busiro County South 244,309Makindye Division West 244,226Luuka County 241,453Okoro County 240,368Oyam County South 238,112Kooki County 237,889Padyere County 237,257Bulamogi County 236,927East Moyo County 232,813Ruhaama County 232,145Kawempe Division North 231,352Mwenge County North 230,719Bungokho County South 228,414Agago County 227,486Buwekula County 227,085Bukanga County 218,755Kiboga West County 214,057Manjiya County 211,683Bukooli County Central 211,553Koboko County 208,163Bugahya County 208,050Kagoma County 206,136Bubulo County East 205,146Chua County 204,163Terego County 204,019Kibuku County 202,630

Nakifuma County 196,864Lubaga Division South 196,288Mbarara Municipality 195,013Bukooli County South 194,563Buyaga West County 193,936Bunya County South 193,350

Mwenge County South 193,272Mawogola County 191,647Kilak County 190,516Bukonjo County East 189,203Butembe County 189,189Bukedea County 188,918Lubaga Division North 188,099Tororo County 187,164Kasamba County 186,468Maracha County 186,176Ruhinda County 185,519Maruzi County 185,380

Aruu County 183,723Kwania County 183,406Dokolo County 182,579Busongora County North 182,343Bamunanika County 179,839Jie County 178,909Bugangaizi West County 178,677Bukooli County North 178,523Erute County 177,702Bulambuli County 177,322Kazo County 176,859Kassanda County North 176,291Buikwe County North 171,747Bunyangabu County 171,293Bugabula County South 170,757Bugweri County 168,867Bungokho County North 168,201Rwampara County 166,618Omoro County 165,642Bunya County West 162,637Mukono Municipality 161,996Kyotera County 161,918Budiope West County 160,697Gomba County 160,075Bugabula County North 159,829Budiope East County 159,771Buzaaya County 159,669Buyaga East County 158,879Serere County 157,829Gulu Municipality 152,276Mityana County South 152,094Nyabushozi County 151,685Buikwe County South 151,370Bukomansimbi County 151,075Makindye Division East 151,050

Most populated constituencies

Africa’s least and most populated Parliaments