Politics of Uganda

Uganda is a presidential republic, in which the President of Uganda is both head of state and head of government. There is a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government.

Legislative power is vested in both the government and the National Assembly. The system is based on a democratic parliamentary system with universal suffrage for all citizens over 18 of years age.

Political culture

In a measure ostensibly designed to reduce sectarian violence, political parties were restricted in their activities from 1986. In the non-party "Movement" system instituted by the current president Yoweri Museveni, political parties continued to exist but could not campaign in elections or field candidates directly (although electoral candidates could belong to political parties). A constitutional referendum cancelled this 19-year ban on multi-party politics in July 2005.

The presidential elections were held in February 2006. Museveni ran against several candidates, of whom the most prominent was the exiled Dr. Kizza Besigye. Museveni was declared the winner. Besigye alleged fraud, and rejected the result. The Supreme Court of Uganda ruled that the election was marred by intimidation, violence, voter disenfranchisement, and other irregularities. However, the Court voted 4-3 to uphold the results of the election.

Executive

The structure of Uganda's government.

Yoweri Museveni, President of Uganda.

Main office holders

Office	Name	Party	Since
President	Yoweri Museveni	National Resistance Movement	26 January 1986
Prime Minister	Ruhakana Rugunda	National Resistance Movement	18 September 2014

The head of state in Uganda is the President, who is elected by a popular vote to a five-year term. This is currently Yoweri Museveni, who is also the head of the armed forces. The previous presidential elections were in February 2006 and in the election of February 2011 Museveni was elected with 68% of the vote. The cabinet is appointed by the president from among the elected legislators. The prime minister, currently Amama Mbabazi, assists the president in the supervision of the cabinet.

The Cabinet of Uganda, according to the Constitution of Uganda, "shall consist of the President, the Vice President and such number of Ministers as may appear to the President to be reasonably necessary for the efficient running of the State."

Ministries of Uganda

• Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Ministry of Justice & Constitutional Affairs
• Ministry of Public Service
• Ministry of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development
• Ministry of Education and Sports
• Ministry of Local Government
• Ministry of Health
• Ministry of Works and Transport
• Ministry of Lands, Housing & Urban Development
• Ministry of Internal Affairs
• Ministry of Water and Environment
• Ministry of Gender, Labour & Social Development
• Ministry of Energy and Minerals
• Ministry of Defense
• Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries
• Ministry of Information & Communication Technology
• Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) - Department of Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Management
• Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) - Department of Information and National Guidance
• Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives

Political parties and elections

For other political parties see List of political parties in Uganda. An overview on elections and election results is included in Elections in Uganda.

On 4 May 2005, the Ugandan Parliament voted to conduct a referendum on the reintroduction of party politics in Uganda. The referendum was held on July 28, 2005 and Ugandans voted for a return to multi-party politics.

 Summary of the 23 February 2006 Ugandan presidential election results

Candidates - nominating parties	Votes	%
Yoweri Museveni - National Resistance Movement	4,109,449	59.26
Kizza Besigye - Forum for Democratic Change	2,592,954	37.39
John Ssebaana Kizito - Democratic Party	109,583	1.58
Abed Bwanika - Independent	65,874	0.95
Miria Obote - Uganda People's Congress	57,071	0.82
Total	6,934,931	100.00
Source: New Vision newspaper, Electoral Commission of Uganda

 Summary of the 23 February 2006 National Assembly of Uganda election results

Parties	Votes	%	Constituency seats	District woman reps.	Indirect seats	Total seats
National Resistance Movement			142	49	14	205
Forum for Democratic Change			27	10	-	37
Uganda People's Congress			9	-	-	9
Democratic Party			8	-	-	8
Conservative Party			1	-	-	1
Justice Forum			1	-	-	1
Independents			26	10	1	37
Vacant			1	-	-	1
Uganda People's Defence Force Representatives						10
Ex-officio members						10
Total (turnout 72 %)			215	69	15	319
Source: Inter-Parliamentary Union
Note on the Distribution of seats: – Constituency seats refers to directly elected constituency representatives (215) – District Woman Reps. refers to directly elected District Woman Representatives (69) – Indirect seats include: Representatives of the Youth (5), Representatives of Persons with Disabilities (5), and Representatives of Workers (5)

Judiciary

The Ugandan judiciary operates as an independent branch of government and consists of magistrate's courts, high courts, courts of appeal (which organizes itself as the Constitutional Court of Uganda when hearing constitutional issues), and the Supreme Court. Judges for the High Court are appointed by the president; Judges for the Court of Appeal are appointed by the president and approved by the legislature.

Law

The Ugandan constitution was adopted on 8 October 1995 by the interim, 284-member Constituent Assembly, charged with debating the draft constitution that had been proposed in May 1993. Uganda's legal system since 1995 has been based on English common law and African customary law (customary law is in effect only when it does not conflict with statutory law). Law enforcement policy is decided by the Police Council, with a special force in charge of suppressing cattle theft. The system accepts compulsory International Court of Justice jurisdiction, with reservations.

Foreign relations

Further information: Foreign relations of Uganda

A fight between Ugandan and Libyan presidential guards sparked chaos during a ceremony attended by the heads of state from 11 African nations on March 19, 2008.

International organization participation

ACP, AfDB, C, EADB, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

See also

• List of government ministries of Uganda
• Cabinet of Uganda
• Parliament of Uganda
• Supreme Court of Uganda

References

• Uganda's opposition join forces (BBC News, 16 February 2004)
• "Uganda 'night commuters' flee rebel brutality" (Yahoo News, October 17, 2005)
• Tripp, Aili Mari, Museveni’s Uganda: Paradoxes of Power in a Hybrid Regime, Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2010.

External links

• Parliament of Uganda
• State House of Uganda
• Constitution of the Republic of Uganda
• Party Politics in Uganda, 1963-2000, Christina Nyströmee
• Uganda Government at DMOZ