Constitution of Uganda
Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, 1995 | ||
---|---|---|
Executive President | | |
Judiciary | Supreme Court | |
History | ||
Amendments | 4 | |
Last amended | 5 January 2018 | |
Author(s) | Uganda Constitutional Commission | |
Supersedes | Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, 1967 | |
Full text | ||
Constitution of the Republic of Uganda at Wikisource |
The Constitution of Uganda is the supreme law of Uganda. The fourth and current constitution was promulgated on 8 October 1995. It sanctions a republican form of government with a powerful President.
The first Constitution was adopted in 1962 only to be replaced 4 years later in 1966. The 1966 Constitution, passed in a tense political environment and without debate, was replaced in 1967. Before it was succeeded by the 1995 Constitution, the 1967 Constitution suffered various periods of suspension, either in full or in part.
In 2005, the Constitution was amended to provide for a multi-party political system.
First constitution (1962–1966)
The first constitution of Uganda was the product of the
The 1962 constitution was amended three times: first, and most importantly, it was amended in 1963 to replace
From 1963 to 1966, Uganda was referred to as the 'Sovereign State of Uganda', because of the strong monarchical element in the Ugandan constitutional set-up.
Second constitution (1966–1967)
In February 1966, during the political crisis that surrounded the
Third constitution (1967–1995)
This constitution renamed Uganda as the 'Republic of Uganda'.
The third constitution was promulgated on 8 September 1967 following three months of debate by a Constituent Assembly formed of members of the National Assembly.[2] It was, in real terms, an amended version of the 1966 constitution[2] but abolished all traditional rulers and all local legislatures[4] and considerably expanded the power of the executive (at that time headed by Obote) at the expense of the legislature.[1] Although the constitution notionally gave rise to a Parliamentary democracy, in practice the National Assembly had little influence.[1] In 1969, the UPC was formally declared to be Uganda's only official party to create a one-party state.[1]
The third constitution was partially suspended under Idi Amin by virtue of Legal Notice No. 1 of 1971[2][4] and largely ignored during his presidency.[2] In particular, since the notice suspended Article 1 (supremacy of the constitution), it paved for the way for Amin to rule by decree.[6] Further constitutional changes by made by the Constitution (Modification) Decree No. 5 of 1971, which provided that all executive powers were to be exercisable by Chairman of the Defence Council (a title Amin himself held)[7] and the Parliament (Vesting of Powers) Decree No. 8 of 1971, which vested legislative powers in Amin and his council of Ministers.[6]
The legal status of the 1967 constitution following Amin's overthrow in 1979 was not clear.[2] Legal Notice No. 1 of 1979 nullified Legal Notice No. 1 of 1971, and fundamentally recognised the 1967 Constitution as once again supreme, but also suspended parts of it and transferred numerous executive powers to incoming President Yusuf Lule.[6][8] All legislative powers referred to in the Constitution were to be vested in the National Consultative Council (NCC) until such a time as a Legislative Assembly could be elected.[7] Despite this, the NCC favoured going further and abandoning the 1967 Constitution altogether.[2] This disagreement contributed to the NCC replacing Lule with Godfrey Binaisa in June 1979.[2] Shortly after, Legal Notice No. 5 of 1980 provided for the establishment of a Presidential Commission. It expressly provided that "where any conflict arises between the provisions of this Proclamation and the provisions of the Constitution of Uganda or any other written law, the provisions of this Proclamation shall prevail".[7]
The 1967 Constitution was formally revived by Obote on his return to power in late 1980,[1] but following his overthrow by Bazilio Olara-Okello in July 1985, the constitution was suspended once more.[9] On seizing power in 1986, the National Resistance Army, under the leadership of Yoweri Museveni, confirmed that the 1967 constitution was supreme but partially suspended.[2][6] In particular, the provisions in the constitution relating to the existence of a national Parliament and the election of the President were suspended for four years (later extended to eight).[2] The detail of this suspension was set out in Legal Notice No. 1 of 1986,[2] which nullified Legal Notice No. 1 of 1979 and invested executive powers in Museveni directly.[7]
Fourth constitution (1995–present)
In 1988, the
The output of that process, Uganda's fourth constitution, dated 22 September 1995, was adopted by the Assembly on 27 September[10] and promulgated on 8 October.[2] Much more detailed than the previous constitutions,[2] it sanctions a republican form of government with a powerful President. Compared to the 1967 constitution, however, the 1995 constitution more overtly attempts to achieve a balance of power between the executive, legislature, and other bodies whose independence is guaranteed by the constitution.[5] For example, under the latter, ministerial appointments and government borrowing must be approved by Parliament; and the civil service is appointed by the independent Public Services Commission and Judicial Service Commission.[5] The President no longer has the power to dissolve Parliament and Parliament can override a presidential veto with a two-thirds majority.[5] The 1995 constitution stresses the notion of an independent judiciary, with the Supreme Court as the final court of appeal.[5]
The 1995 Constitution of Uganda has restored all the traditional monarchies, except for the
Amendments in 2005 removed presidential
Pursuant to Article 102, a person to qualify for election as president must be a citizen of Uganda by birth, not younger than thirty-five and qualified to be a member of Parliament.[11]
References
- ^ JSTOR 160775.
- ^ ISBN 978-9970-02-084-3. Archivedfrom the original on 2018-04-14. Retrieved 2018-04-14.
- ^ JSTOR 744686.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-85664-643-0. Archivedfrom the original on 2019-12-22. Retrieved 2018-04-14.
- ^ a b c d e Rukare, Donald. "Constitutional Implementation 20 Years Later: The Uganda Report Card". In Fombad, Charles Manga (ed.). The Implementation of Modern African Constitutions: Challenges and prospects (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-04-14. Retrieved 2018-04-14.
- ^ a b c d Bruno, Ayebare (16 June 2016). "Constitutional Law Notes II". ayebarebruno.blogspot.co.uk. Archived from the original on 30 April 2018. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
- ^ a b c d Sekindi, Fredrick Derek (27 May 2015). "A Critical Analysis of the Legal Construction of the Presidency in Post-1995 Uganda" (PDF). Brunel University. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 April 2018. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
- ^ The Report of the Uganda Constitutional Commission: Analysis and Recommendations. Uganda Constitutional Commission. 1993. p. 317. Archived from the original on 2022-02-07. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
A Proclamation in legal Notice No. 1 of 1979, suspected Chapters IV and V of the Constitution. Legal Notice No. 1 of 1971 was nullified.
- ^ "Ugandan Officers Suspend Constitution". New York Times. 29 July 1985. Archived from the original on 14 April 2018. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Constitutional history of Uganda". ConstitutionNet. Archived from the original on 14 April 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- ^ "Uganda". India Lawyers - India Law/Indian Lawyer, Online Legal Solutions of India Law Firm Lawyers. Archived from the original on 2021-11-15. Retrieved 2021-11-15.
External links
- The full text of Constitution of the Republic of Uganda at Wikisource
- The 1962 constitution
- The 1966 constitution
- The 1967 constitution
- Constitution Archived 2015-02-06 at the Wayback Machine, The State House of Uganda