Govt will not establish a Constitutional Review Commission, Mao says

The Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Norbert Mao, has disclosed that the government will not establish the long-awaited Constitutional Review Commission. This decision comes after Parliament failed to allocate the necessary resources in time for its establishment.

During a meeting where officials from the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs defended their 205.8 billion shillings budget framework paper for the fiscal year 2024/2025, legislators on the legal and parliamentary committee queried the Minister about the promised Constitutional Review Commission.

Mao revealed that, in light of the resource constraints, government have opted to utilise the Uganda Law Reform Commission to gather all constitutional proposals. These proposals will then be compiled and presented to the cabinet for approval before being submitted to Parliament.

Additionally, Minister Mao informed the committee about reports indicating that, following the passage of the anti-homosexuality law, several global partners are redirecting their support towards civil society organizations rather than aiding the government directly.

Furthermore, the Minister urged the committee to consider exempting all state attorneys in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs from the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) tax. The measure aims to bridge the incentive gap for state attorneys compared to their counterparts in the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP). Minister Mao highlighted that the failure to waive PAYE tax has led many competent state attorneys to seek positions as judges in the High Court.