STORY BY:
MOSES MUGALULA
NEWS EDITOR MEDIA
NEWLY elected Speaker of the 11th Parliament of Uganda Rt. Hon. Annet Anita Among has openly told off those who thought that she has taken on the 6th floor majorly to blow ruling NRM’s trumpet, she says, that is a wrong perception. She will be a Speaker for all, she is going to serve the nation not a particular political party.
Meanwhile, President Museveni has banned celebrations by both Speaker Anita and Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa’s camps upon their candidate’s victory, saying country is still mourning the passing of Speaker Jacob Oulanyah.
The Head of State has directed that all celebrations be halted. Both camps ha
Giving her acceptance speech after 401 legislators elected her Speaker Paliament of Uganda, today at Kololo ceremonial grounds, Anita Among has clearly said, “I am going to be Speaker for all, I am not Speaker for NRM.”
Anita was defeated her competitor Asuman Basalirwa who polled 66 votes only.
BELLOW IS SPEAKER ANITA’S FULL ACCEPTANCE SPEECH
Your Excellency, the President of the Republic of Uganda, General Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, Your Excellency the Vice President, Your Lordship, the Honourable Chief Justice of the Republic of Uganda, Rt. Hon. Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers and Ministers of State, Colleagues Members of Parliament, The Clerk and Staff of Parliament, Fellow Country Men and Women, Praise be to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
It is with great honour and privilege that I stand before you to extend my sincere thanks and gratitude to you for electing me to the Chair of Speaker of the 11th Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.
With humility and respect, I would like to say; thank you, Eyalama Noi…. Eyalama noi noi…
Today is a day of mixed emotions. A day when we continue to mourn our fallen leader, comrade, friend, father and brother; Rt. Hon. Jacob L’okori Oulanyah and yet the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda which, we swore to uphold, dictates that constitutional processes to legitimise the business of Parliament to go on.
I am happy that as statesmen and women we have lived up to our constitutional obligation.
The times have been challenging, especially the last few days. The grief, sorrow, and pain have taken a toll on all of us. The worries and the struggles. But we have also witnessed your courage, your resilience, and the generosity of your spirit to run the course of the Rt. Honourable Oulanyah’s vision.
Your Excellency and Honourable Members, this is a day I never imagined would happen this soon, especially because I believed that for the next five or ten years I would have a strong mentor and leader to hold my hand. Little did I know that God had a different script.
I request that we rise and observe a moment of silence in honour of our fallen leader, brother, father, mentor and friend; the Rt. Hon. Jacob L’Okori Oulanyah.
Your Excellency and Honourable Colleagues, I am humbled and indeed overjoyed by the faith and trust you have placed in me. I am greatly indebted to you for what I have become today.
The leadership of the 11th Parliament will continue to be guided by a vision to have a people centred Parliament that is anchored on evidence based debates. Honourable Colleagues, we shall base all our decisions on facts as presented to the House.
Indeed we committed that reason and sound logic shall be used in tabling our positions, this will enable us to derive correct interpretation from agreed facts. I implore everyone to be tolerant and have mutual respect.
Economy, efficiency and effectiveness shall underpin our utilization of the financial, material and human capital resources available to us.
Your Excellency and Honourable Members, the ongoing re-organization and institutional Reform of the Parliamentary Commission and the Parliamentary Service will continue until we achieve optimal performance and adequate support to the Members of Parliament. Legislative and Administrative support services must meet the needs of the Members of Parliament.
Ours shall be a Parliament where the needs of the common man take centre stage in order to achieve the social – economic transformation that the NRM manifesto strives to achieve.
Honourable Colleagues, you have been unanimous in your assessment of my leadership; I’m here, ready to serve you, but I will serve you; as we walk the journey together.
United as we have always been, let us deliver a transformed country that we all call home.
A better Uganda is good for everyone irrespective of your political affiliation. The reason we have reached out to all political parties in Parliament to work for our country. I will be a Speaker for all.
I therefore, thank my party the National Resistance Movement and all the Members of the 11th Parliament for choosing and elevating me to the position of the Speaker of the 11th Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.
I trust that with the guidance of the Lord I will steer the House in a manner that will not only satisfy and inspire Ugandans but also make my party and yourselves proud of your choice and indeed, honour the legacy of my fallen mentor and brother Jacob.
It is the greatest honour of my life to accept this responsibility to serve the 11th Parliament and indeed, the Republic of Uganda as Speaker.
God Bless You
FOR GOD AND MY COUNTRY
Anita Annet Among, MP
SPEAKER OF PARLIAMENT
FACTS ABOUT SPEAKER ANITA AMONG
Born 23 November 1973, Anita is a Ugandan accountant, lawyer and politician who served as the Deputy Speaker of the 11th Parliament of Uganda (2021–2022).
She also concurrently serves as the elected member of parliament for the Bukedea District Women Constituency, the same position she held in the 10th parliament (2016–2021). She was in FDC party before she joined the ruling NRM where she was voted as the Deputy speaker of the 11th parliament.
She attended local schools for her elementary and secondary education. She graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, from Makerere University, in 2005. In 2008, she was awarded a Master of Business Administration degree, also by Makerere University.
In 2018, Among graduated from Kampala International University, with a Bachelor of Laws degree. At that time she was in the process of attaining qualification as a Chartered Certified Accountant.
From 1998 until 2006, Ms Among worked at Centenary Bank, one of the large commercial banks in the country. At the time she left in 2006, she had risen to the rank of branch manager. For the ten years prior to her election to parliament, she served as a lecturer in accounting, at Kampala International University.
For two parliamentary election cycles in 2007, when Bukedea District was created, and 2011, Among lost the District Woman Representative seat to Rose Akol of the National Resistance Movement political party.
Among, a long-time member of the opposition Forum for Democratic Change political party, ran in 2016 as an independent candidate. She won and is the incumbent MP.
In 2020, she joined the National Resistance Movement (NRM) after falling out with her party FDC and won the party primaries. In the 2021 general elections, she was one of the few legislators who was elected unopposed to join the 11th parliament .
Among has been declared the speaker of the 11th parliament of Uganda in the by-election
