Constitutional reforms debate takes shape two years to 2026 polls

Civil Society Organizations have renewed calls for electoral and constitutional reforms ahead of the 2026 elections.

On Tuesday, a conference was held in Kampala under the theme "The Road to the 2026 General Elections in Uganda: Revisiting the Quest for Constitutional and Electoral Reforms." 

The conference attracted representatives from academic institutions, political parties, and CSOs, who made calls for immediate action on four key structural factors as time was running out.

They include; rebuilding citizenship and the culture of constitutionalism, economic franchising of the citizenry, securing the independence and credibility of elections governing institutions, and shifting ownership of elections from the Electoral Commission to the citizens.

Ms Winnie Kizza, of the Alliance for National Transformation (ANT), stated that the 1995 Constitution no longer fulfils the country's democratic objectives, including inclusive governance and equal participation for all stakeholders.

"Unless the citizens of Uganda have a clear understanding of their direction and the need for these reforms, we will continue to receive insignificant electoral reforms," Ms Kizza expressed. 

She added: "Every time an election is impending, the call for electoral reforms becomes more intense. It's not enough to have a situation where one of the parties involved in the election is the one appointing the referee and linesmen while calling others to play the game."

Dr Nansozi Muwanga, a political science lecturer at Makerere University, emphasized the need for a clear focus on the country's priorities in the two years leading up to the elections.
He suggested addressing the issue of civic education to improve the ability to drive the democratic process.

Prof Fredrick Ssempebwa, a member of the 1995 Constitution Commission, said Uganda still needs to have further discussions on reforms as the country is not democratic enough.

Mr David Rubongoya, the Secretary General of the National Unity Platform (NUP) said the problem was not laws but rather the discussion should be directed at the impunity directed to the Opposition by the government during the election period.

The Constitution states that the power and authority of the government is derived from the people, who are the sovereign authority in Uganda. Distortions in our country's electoral process have frustrated the promise of a new political, economic and social governance dispensation during the past 25 years under the current constitutional framework (1995-2021), according to CSOs.

CSOs contend that elections are becoming more violent, with the unregulated use of money and incumbent political actors deploying state resources. To address these issues, they have proposed enacting comprehensive constitutional, legal, and political reforms.

“This would be necessary if the country is to continue progressing on its democratic path.”

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