The Speaker of parliament Rebecca Kadaga has declared that she will not accept the Vice President’s job as a compromise to relinquish her bid for speakership.
Kadaga’s announcement came during a meeting with elected members of parliament from Busoga Sub-region at Hotel Africana in kampala on Sunday.
Kadaga who has been speaker since 2011, is battling to retain her job with her deputy Jacob Oulanyah and other two contenders including the opposition chief Whip and Kira Municiality MP Hon Ssemujju Nganda.
The race for speaker has divided both the house and the party as both candidates are busy seeking endorsements from various groups and associations of MPs from across the country.
The NRM party with majority of representatives in the house will decide the next speaker during the first sitting of the 11th Parliament in May.
At the meeting, Kadaga said she received an offer from some party members to take the Vice Presidency in the new Cabinet, but said she will never accept since the office does not present her with decision-making roles.
The matter of rejecting the vice president post by Kadaga was reportedly floated by the members of parliament hailing from Busoga who told her never to accept any compromising post and leave the speakership.
Iganga municipality MP Hon Peter Mugema panado and the mp for Luuka south county Stephen Kisa said that as Busoga MPs they are not interested in any other post in cabinet save fir only the speaker of parliament.
Kadaga’s announcement came as she was meeting with the Busoga elected members of parliament on Sunday at Hotel Africana in Kampala as she continues with campaigns to retain the post of the speaker.
The member of parliament for Iganga municipality Peter Mugema Panado and the MP for Luuka south county Stephen Kisa also said that as Busoga members of parliament, they are not interested in any other post in cabinet and they insist on retaining the post of the speaker of parliament.
The latest contender for the position of the speaker is the newly elected Bukoto central MP Richard Ssebamala.
Kadaga also disputed the argument allegedly being peddled by her opponents who claim that the Busoga region does not deserv a prominent position in next cabinet since the region did not overwhelmingly vote President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni in 2021 elections.
Kadaga said the Northern region has always been represented in government despite the meager support towards NRM over the years except for the just concluded election.
