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Rebecca Kadaga

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The Right Honourable
Rebecca Kadaga
First Deputy Prime Minister of Uganda
Incumbent
Assumed office
21 June 2021
PresidentYoweri Museveni
Prime MinisterRobinah Nabbanja
Preceded byMoses Ali
Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda
In office
19 May 2011 – 24 May 2021
Preceded byEdward Ssekandi
Succeeded byJacob Oulanyah
Personal details
Born (1956-05-24) 24 May 1956 (age 68)
Kamuli, Uganda
CitizenshipUganda
Political partyNational Resistance Movement
Residence(s)Kampala, Uganda
Alma materMakerere University
(LLB)
Law Development Center
(Diploma in Legal Practice)
University of Zimbabwe
(MA), (Diploma in Women's Law)
Nkumba University
(Honorary LLD)
OccupationLawyer and politician

Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga (born 24 May 1956) is a Ugandan lawyer and politician who served as the Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda from 19 May 2011 until 21 May 2021. She currently serves as the First Deputy Prime Minister of Uganda. She concurrently serves as Minister for East African Community Affairs, in the Cabinet of Uganda.[1]

She is the first woman to be elected Speaker in the history of the Parliament of Uganda. She succeeded Edward Ssekandi, who served as Speaker from 2001 to 2011.[2][3]

She is also the current Member of Parliament (MP) for the Kamuli District Women's Constituency, Busoga sub-region, a position she has held since 1989.[4][5]

Background and education

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She was born in Kamuli District, Eastern Uganda, on 24 May 1956. Rebecca Kadaga attended Namasagali College for her high school education. She studied law at Makerere University, graduating with the degree of Bachelor of Laws (LLB), in 1978. She went on to obtain a Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Center in Kampala in 1979. In 2000, she obtained a Diploma in Women's Law from the University of Zimbabwe. In 2003, she obtained the degree of Master of Arts (MA), specializing in Women's Law, also from the University of Zimbabwe.[6] In 2019, Nkumba University, a private university in Uganda, awarded Kadaga an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.[7]

Work experience

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Rebecca Kadaga

Between 1984 and 1988, she was in private law practice. From 1989 to 1996, she served as the member of parliament for Kamuli District in the District Woman's Constituency. She served as the Chairperson of the University Council for Mbarara University between 1993 and 1996. In 1996, she served as Secretary General of the East African Women Parliamentarians Association.

From 1996 to 1998, Rebecca Kadaga was the Ugandan Minister of State for Regional Cooperation (Africa and the Middle East). From 1998 to 1999, she was Minister of State for Communication and Aviation, and from 1999 to 2000, she was Minister of Parliamentary Affairs. She was elected as Deputy Speaker of Parliament in 2001, a position that she held until 19 May 2011, when she was elected Speaker of Parliament.[8]

Following the February 2016 general election, Kadaga was unanimously re-elected as Speaker of Parliament on 19 May 2016.[9]

On December 20, 2017, Kadaga presided over the Ugandan Parliament session that passed a constitutional amendment which, among other measures, eliminated the requirement for candidates running for the presidency to be younger than 75 years of age. The amendment essentially gave Museveni leeway to run for President of Uganda for his sixth term in office.[10]

On 14 January 2021, Kadaga was re-elected to Parliament as a Woman Representative for Kamuli District. Consequently, she embarked on a campaign to retain her position as Speaker of Parliament for a third term. Kadaga lost the Speaker Vote to her former deputy Jacob Oulanyah after falling out of favor with her party, the National Resistance Movement (NRM).[11]

Parliamentary duties

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Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga & Ursula von der Leyen - 2022
The Vice President, Shri M. Hamid Ansari with the Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda, Ms. Rebecca Kadaga, in Kampala, Uganda

Besides her duties as speaker of the Ugandan Parliament, she sat on the following parliamentary committees:

  • Appointments Committee – The Committee reviews all Cabinet appointments by the President, and may approve or reject an appointment: The Speaker chairs the committee
  • The Parliamentary Commission – The Speaker chairs the Commission
  • The Business Committee – The Speaker chairs the committee

Controversy

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Kadaga vowed to pass the Uganda Anti-Homosexuality Bill through parliament by December 2012. The bill – sometimes referred to as the "Kill the Gays bill" – at one time sought to make acts of homosexuality punishable by death or life imprisonment but later removed the death penalty option from the bill. She says it will become law since most Ugandans "are demanding it".[12]

In December 2012, Kadaga was in Rome to give a speech at the Seventh Session of the Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for the International Criminal Court and the Rule of Law.[13][14]

Reports circulated that Kadaga received a blessing from Pope Benedict XVI at a Vatican mass.[15] Soon after the news broke, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi issued a statement that said: “relations with the delegation were not out of the ordinary and no blessing was given.” The group of Ugandan MPs greeted the Pope “just like any other individuals attending an audience with the Pope would” and this was “by no means a specific sign of approval of Kadaga’s actions or proposals.” [16]

In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Kadaga tweeted that a "spray, which instantly kills the Corona virus, has been discovered & is to be co-produced in Uganda".[17] She [18] gave an impression that what was later on to be understood as a simple sanitizer was actually treatment for COVID-19 and received so much backlash from Ugandans on social media and professional bodies in the medical field like the Uganda Medical Association,[19] and the Pharmaceutical Society of Uganda. She hit back by calling the people of the Association brainless.[20]

In April 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Kadaga and her fellow members of parliament allocated to themselves over 10 billion Uganda shillings of what was meant to be relief funds for efforts to fight against the pandemic and its associated socio-economic disruptions.[21]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "New Cabinet: Museveni drops Kutesa, 10 ministers". The Independent (Uganda). Kampala, Uganda. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  2. ^ Wambi, Michael (24 May 2011). "Politics: First Woman Speaker of Parliament Changing Politics". Inter Press Service. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  3. ^ Namutebi, Joyce; Mukasa, Henry; Olupot, Milton (19 May 2011). "Kadaga is first female Speaker". New Vision. Kampala, Uganda. Archived from the original (Archived from the original on 11 December 2014) on 11 December 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  4. ^ Mutaka, Moses (2 July 2015). "Kadaga should quit Kamuli woman seat, says rival". Daily Monitor. Kampala. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  5. ^ Paul, Sonia (26 February 2016). "Will This Woman Replace Uganda's Strongman?". Slate Magazine. New York City. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  6. ^ "Profile of Alitwala Rebecca Kadaga". Parliament of Uganda. 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  7. ^ Muganga, Eve; Kyeyune, Moses (26 October 2019). "Nkumba University Awards Kadaga With Honorary Doctorate of Laws". Daily Monitor. Kampala. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  8. ^ Naturinda, Sheila (16 May 2011). "Speaker Ssekandi Quits for Kadaga". Daily Monitor (Kampala). Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  9. ^ "Kadaga Speaker, Oulanyah Deputy", New Vision, 19 May 2016.
  10. ^ [1], The Independent, 12 August 2020.
  11. ^ [2], The Nile Post 25 May 2021.
  12. ^ Muhumuza, Rodney (12 November 2012). "Uganda's Anti-Gay Bill To Pass This Year: Official". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
  13. ^ "Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for The ICC And The Rule of Law – 7th Session". Parliamentarians for Global Action. December 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  14. ^ "7th Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for The International Criminal Court (ICC) And The Rule of Law & World Parliamentary Conference On Human Rights 34th Annual Forum of PGA, 10 & 11 December 2012: Programme" (PDF). Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA). 7 December 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  15. ^ "Speaker Kadaga Receives Blessings From The Pope At Vatican Mass". Parliament of Uganda. December 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  16. ^ Speciale, Alessandro (15 December 2012). "Why Does Benedict XVI Receive Anti-Gay Politicians In Audience?". Vatican Insider. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  17. ^ Ampurire, Paul (16 March 2020). "Uganda Partnering With A U.S. Inventor To Produce Disinfectant That Kills Coronavirus – Kadaga". SoftPower News. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  18. ^ "Medical Doctors' Body: Scientist Endorsed By Kadaga for COVID-19 Cure is a Quack". Online news from Uganda and the East African region – SoftPower News. 17 March 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  19. ^ "Uganda Medical Association: There is No Known Cure for COVID-19". Uganda Radionetwork. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  20. ^ "Coronavirus: Kadaga hits back at "brainless" medical body over "quack" doctor claims". Nile Post. 18 March 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  21. ^ "Kadaga to MPs: 'Stop Discussing Shs 10bn Allocation to Parliament, Leave it to Me'". Online news from Uganda and the East African region – SoftPower News. 16 April 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
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Parliament of Uganda
Preceded by Speaker of Parliament
2011–2021 		Succeeded by
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