Speaker Rebecca Kadaga has laid new terms for those involved with security operations at Parliament, ordering all plain-clothed operatives, both police and military, off the precincts of the August House.
In her Communication to the House during the plenary sitting, the Speaker first gave orders to Sergeant-at-Arms, who is charged with manning security at Parliament, to seal all ‘illegal entrances’ to august house.
She pointed out the access on the fourth floor of the Parliament building as well as the entrance from the Office of the President where one can reach the lobby without going through the security checkpoints.
“This poses a danger to the premises. I am now instructing the Sergeant at Arms to seal that place on the Parliament side,” Kadaga ordered.
Yet still, Kadaga gave new instructions on how Police, which has a full directorate at Parliament, will operate.
“I am further instructing that all staff of Parliament Police must henceforth wear uniform and they must have name tags,” she said.
The new instructions have also called for the Clerk to Parliament Jane Kibirige to ensure that the names and the ranks of police officers deployed at Parliament are submitted in writing to the Speaker.
Following public criticism of what her critiques termed as ‘surrendering Parliament powers to plain clothed security operatives’, Kadaga also issued new orders on the non-uniformed security operatives, ordering them off the precincts of Parliament.
“Parliament is a civilian institution; all other security organs if they are here should withdraw and go to where they are supposed to go,” Kadaga said.
It should be recalled that in September, police boss General Kale Kayihura admitted ordering plain-clothed Special Forces Command (SFC) soldiers to raid the parliamentary chambers and evict opposition MPs who were protesting against the removal of age limit clause from the Constitution.
At the time several opposition MPs including Angelina Osegge, Betty Nambooze and Fred Butebi Zaake were injured.
