President Yoweri Museveni has signed into law the controversial Age Limit Bill recently passed by the Ugandan Parliament
According to Uganda’s Daily Monitor newspaper, the President’s press secretary Linda Nabusayi said he signed the bill into an Act of Parliament on December 27, before sending communication on December 29.
This means that Museveni, 73, can run for another term, come the 2021 presidential poll, should he choose to.
Kenya has no lower or upper age limit for contesting for the presidency. The main qualification is one being a citizen by birth and qualifying to stand for election as MP and be nominated by a political party.
However, the President can only serve for two terms of five years each.
Museveni’s signing of the Bill comes amid calls from religious leaders and political activists urging him to return the bill to Parliament.
The Ugandan parliament on December 10, voted by majority of 317 MPs against 97 to change the Constitution and remove the 75-year age limit and to extend the term of MPs from five to seven years.
The Archbishop of Gulu who doubles as the chairman of Episcopal conference John Baptist Odama, had, like other religious leaders, cautioned President Museveni against appending his signature on the bill.
Odama had said if Museveni signs the Bill passed without the views of majority Ugandans, he would be tormented by his conscience.
“If what has been passed by Parliament is not the view of the majority citizens, let him not sign it,” he said.
