Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulanyah has reportedly pulled out of the race for Speaker of the 10th Parliament, which had pitted him against his boss Rebecca Kadaga.
According to local media, Oulanyah succumbed to pressure from party loyalists and picked forms to contest for the post of Deputy Speaker from the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Electoral Commission this afternoon.
But contacted for comment today, the NRM EC boss Dr Tanga Odoi denied knowledge of any such development taking place. “I don’t know about that,” Dr Odoi told the EagleOnline on phone.
Over the past two months both Kadaga and Oulanyah have been engaged in an acrimonious ‘battle of supremacy’ for the post of Speaker, a development that run the risk of dividing the NRM along factional lines.
As a result, recently a group of about 30 MPs-elect from the Busoga region reportedly held a meeting where they pledged loyalty to Kadaga, while it is said that Mityana North MP-elect Godfrey Kiwanda Ssuubi, who is also the NRM Buganda Caucus chairman, is canvassing support for Oulanyah among the Buganda MPs.
Notably however, the NRM Chairman Yoweri Museveni has distanced himself from according support to all those vying for the post of Speaker and Deputy Speaker.
Indeed, earlier today, a release by State House indicated that the ‘Kadaga-Oulanyah battle’ had been sent to the NRM Parliamentary Caucus, following a Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting yesterday chaired by the NRM National Chairman, President Yoweri Museveni.
“The Central Executive Committee (CEC) of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) met under the chairmanship of HE Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and agreed on the way forward on the issue of Speaker and Deputy Speaker of Parliament. The recommendations will be presented to parliamentary caucus on 5th of May 2016,” the release states in part.
