Former Leader of Opposition and Gulu District Woman MP Betty Aol Ocan has offered a blunt reflection on Uganda’s 11th Parliament, describing it as a House that drifted away from the people it was meant to serve.
Speaking on NBS TV’s Morning Breeze with Simon Kaggwa Njala, Aol joined a wider discussion on whether the newly constituted 12th Parliament can “exorcise the ghosts” of its predecessor — a Parliament many critics say was defined more by controversy than accountability.
For Aol, the concern is not just about politics in the abstract. It is about how far Parliament has moved from the everyday Ugandan.
She recalled a time when access to Parliament felt restricted and overly controlled, describing a situation where “roadblocks were put all around” and only MPs and parliamentary staff could easily enter the precincts.
To her, that image captures a deeper problem.
“This is the people’s Parliament,” she said in essence, warning against a culture where leaders become distant from the very citizens they represent.
Her remarks land in the shadow of the 11th Parliament under Speaker Anita Annet Among, a period that was repeatedly marked by public debate over Parliament’s independence, accountability and spending decisions.
Over its term, the House faced sustained public scrutiny — from controversial financial approvals and supplementary budgets to the widely discussed iron sheets scandal, where government relief items meant for vulnerable communities were allegedly diverted to senior officials and political leaders.
For many Ugandans, these moments reinforced a perception of a Parliament that was increasingly out of touch.
There were also growing concerns that the House had weakened its oversight role, with critics arguing that key government decisions were passed with limited resistance, raising fears that Parliament had become more of a rubber stamp than a watchdog.
It is against this backdrop that Aol’s message to the new Parliament carries weight.
But she does not only dwell on criticism.
She also points to what she believes must change.
She urged the new Speaker, Oboth-Oboth, to remain grounded and accessible, warning against leadership styles that isolate institutions from the public.
“You should not fear people,” she said, suggesting that leadership does not require distance or detachment from citizens.
To Aol, the strength of Parliament should not be measured by how secure or protected it is, but by how close it remains to the people it serves.
Still, she admits the task ahead is not simple.
Cleaning up Parliament, she said, will require more than speeches and promises. It will demand a cultural shift inside the institution itself — one that confronts corruption, patronage and self-interest.
“These things did not start yesterday,” she implied. “They have become habits.”
Yet she sees a chance for renewal — if leaders are willing to listen, reflect and surround themselves with voices that challenge rather than flatter them.
“If all you hear is ‘yes, yes, yes,’ then nothing changes,” she cautioned.
Aol also pushed back against the sweeping public perception that MPs enter Parliament purely for personal gain, saying that while the belief is widespread, it risks overshadowing those who genuinely serve.
But she did not shy away from accountability either.
When reminded that many of the new leadership figures, including Oboth-Oboth, were part of the 11th Parliament, she agreed that responsibility cannot be selectively assigned.
“You judge Parliament collectively,” she said simply.
And in that statement lies the uncomfortable truth for Uganda’s new House: the 12th Parliament is not starting from a clean slate. It is inheriting both the strengths and the stains of the one before it.
Whether it can rise above them — or repeat them — remains the question now hanging over the chambers of Parliament.