| 29 |
Can members of the legislature be held accountable for their actions? |
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29a:
In law, the judiciary can review laws passed by the legislature.
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| Score: |
YES |
NO |
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Comments:
References: Constitution of Uganda, Articles 129-132
Peer Review Comments: Yes, the judiciary can review the laws passed by the legislature. Consider the 2002 constitutional review commission headed by Fredrick Sempebwa to review the draft Constitution and the 1993-1995 Constituent Assembly.
Peer Review Comments: Both the judiciary and the legislature are deemed to have equal powers to check against the other when there is an arbitrary misuse of resources. The executive branch, however, has no powers to challenge the legitimate laws enacted in Parliament, whose sole mandate is to enforce laws[?] that govern the nation.The judiciary acts only as per the Constitution or laws made by the legislature and has no supreme powers to rule[overrule?] or demean the legislature.This is wrong.The three institutions should have equal powers to check the excesses or abuse of the country's scarce resources to ensure justice in governance.
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29b:
In practice, when necessary, the judiciary reviews laws passed by the legislature.
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| Score: |
100 |
75 |
50 |
25 |
0 |
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Comments:
References: Interview with person who has been granted anonymity. 24/08/2007.
Peer Review Comments: The judiciary reviews the laws passed by the legislature but with little success, because its arms, such as the high court, Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court seem not to be independent of one another. That is why it has not been effective in reviewing the laws.
Peer Review Comments: It can depending on the impact of the law to the general public. The legislature takes ample time to effectively debate laws before passing them. If the president signs them into law, there is no room to amend them unless it is done while reviewing the Constitution, which is subject to the people's consent.
Peer Review Comments: The judiciary these days is a bit intimidated and can only act on cases brought to it by complainants.
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29c:
In law, are members of the national legislature subject to criminal proceedings?
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| Score: |
YES |
NO |
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Comments:
References: Constitution, Article 97
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| 30 |
Are there regulations governing conflicts of interest by members of the national legislature? |
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30a:
In law, members of the national legislature are required to file an asset disclosure form.
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| Score: |
YES |
NO |
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Comments:
References: Leadership Code Act, 2002. S. 3(2).
Peer Review Comments: Yes, the Leadership Code of Conduct in the Constitution (Article 233( requires specified officers to declare their incomes, assets and liabilities from time to time and how they acquired or incurred them, as the case may be.
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30b:
In law, there are restrictions for national legislators entering the private sector after leaving the government.
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| Score: |
YES |
NO |
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Comments:
References: Leadership Code Act, 2002. S. 16.
Peer Review Comments: Generally, there are no restrictions. National legislators can enter into private business after leaving the government. It is a conflict of interest only if they do private business at the same time they perform government duties.
Peer Review Comments: There are no restrictions, and the law should be enforced to bar capital offenders, those who have been declared insane or those convicted in a court of law for abuse of office.
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30c:
In law, there are regulations governing gifts and hospitality offered to members of the national legislature.
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| Score: |
YES |
NO |
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Comments:
References: Leadership Code, 2002. Act S. 10.
Peer Review Comments: True, but they are usually ignored and not enforced.
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30d:
In law, there are requirements for the independent auditing of the asset disclosure forms of members of the national legislature.
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| Score: |
YES |
NO |
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Comments:
References: Leadership Code Act, 2002. S. 5.
Peer Review Comments: There is need to introduce such laws to enhance transparency and accountability.
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30e:
In practice, the regulations restricting post-government private sector employment for national legislators are effective.
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| Score: |
100 |
75 |
50 |
25 |
0 |
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Comments: Because of the low numbers of people with such skills and qualifications, some of them are employed by the government on commissions and other forms of contracts.
References: Interview with staff in Political Science Department of Makerere University.
Peer Review Comments: The regulations are not effective in any way.
Peer Review Comments: I am not aware of anybody enforcing these regulations. The mechanisms for enforcement are very weak. Nobody follows up on the matter.
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30f:
In practice, the regulations governing gifts and hospitality offered to national legislators are effective.
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| Score: |
100 |
75 |
50 |
25 |
0 |
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Comments:
References: Interview with PRO, Judiciary. 23/12/2006.
Peer Review Comments: They are not effective
Peer Review Comments: There is no mechanism to effectively follow up with this matter. People may voluntarily hand over the gifts, but if they do not, there is no way to follow up with the matter.
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30g:
In practice, national legislative branch asset disclosures are audited.
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| Score: |
100 |
75 |
50 |
25 |
0 |
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Comments:
References: Interview with PRO, Judiciary.
Peer Review Comments: The Inspector General of Government has no capacity to verify the truth of the declarations, so the declarations have become a mere formality and cannot help in tracking down cases of corruption. What is audited is the fact that they disclose.
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| 31 |
Can citizens access the asset disclosure records of members of the national legislature? |
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31a:
In law, citizens can access the asset disclosure records of members of the national legislature.
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| Score: |
YES |
NO |
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Comments:
References: Leadership Code Act, 2002. S. 7.
Peer Review Comments: It is true ,according to the law, but this has never happened.
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31b:
In practice, citizens can access legislative asset disclosure records within a reasonable time period.
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| Score: |
100 |
75 |
50 |
25 |
0 |
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Comments:
References: Interview with IGG staff. 23/08/2007.
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31c:
In practice, citizens can access legislative asset disclosure records at a reasonable cost.
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| Score: |
100 |
75 |
50 |
25 |
0 |
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Comments:
References: Interview with IGG staff. 23/08/2007.
Peer Review Comments: There are a lot of barriers. Sensitive information may not be released easily. Reporters seeking such information are often subjected to a rigorous process of questioning to determine why they want such information and where they got wind of the information in the first place. In addition, there are also at times attempts to bribe reporters to keep such stories under their hat.This mostly applies to scandals and graft stories.
Peer Review Comments: it is simply not worth the hassle because of the bureaucratic roadblocks
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| 32 |
Can citizens access legislative processes and documents? |
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32a:
In law, citizens can access records of legislative processes and documents.
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| Score: |
YES |
NO |
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Comments:
References: Constitution of Uganda, Article 31.
Peer Review Comments: But there are bureaucratic tendencies.
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32b:
In practice, citizens can access records of legislative processes and documents within a reasonable time period.
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| Score: |
100 |
75 |
50 |
25 |
0 |
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Comments:
References: Interview with IGG staff. 23/08/2007.
Peer Review Comments: There tend to be delays.
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32c:
In practice, citizens can access records of legislative processes and documents at a reasonable cost.
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| Score: |
100 |
75 |
50 |
25 |
0 |
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Comments:
References: Interview with IGG staff. 23/08/2007.
Peer Review Comments: True, but most Ugandans are not aware of how they can lodge complaints in case access to records is denied.
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