Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC) Chairperson Mariam Wangadya has told Parliament’s Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) that President Yoweri Museveni rejected her resignation and directed her to immediately return to office.
Wangadya made the disclosure on Tuesday while appearing before COSASE, where she was asked to clarify her status following reports that she had resigned as chairperson of the Commission.
“Mr. Chairman, it is true I wrote a letter of resignation to His Excellency the President, and my resignation was rejected,” Wangadya told the committee.
She said her continued tenure was also confirmed publicly by the Attorney General, Hon. Dr Sam Mayanja, who told Parliament that her resignation had not been accepted and that she remained the substantive chairperson of the UHRC.
“As I conclude, the Honorable Attorney General of this country addressed Parliament, and in his address he very clearly said that my resignation had not been accepted, and that I remain the substantive chairperson of the Uganda Human Rights Commission,” she said.
However, when asked whether she had received a formal written communication from the appointing authority confirming the rejection of her resignation, Wangadya revealed that the President’s response was communicated to her by telephone.
“The response I received from the appointing authority was through a phone call. It was not in writing,” she said.
According to Wangadya, President Museveni instructed her to return to office immediately if she had already left.
“Sometimes His Excellency the President communicates through phone calls, and I was instructed, if I had left office, to return to office immediately. And I complied with the directive of the Fountain of Honor,” she told the committee.
Wangadya further said the President’s directive was consistent with the statement delivered to Parliament by the Attorney General.
“In fact, the Attorney General spoke on behalf of His Excellency the President. He did not speak just on his own behalf,” she said.
“The words he spoke were the words of His Excellency the President. He was instructed to inform the country, through Parliament, that my resignation had not been accepted.”
Asked whether she was appearing before COSASE in her capacity as chairperson of the Commission, Wangadya was unequivocal.
“I appear as the chairperson, not the former chairperson of the Commission,” she said.
Her testimony provides a direct account of the circumstances surrounding her publicised resignation, while also putting on record that the communication she says she received from President Museveni was verbal rather than written.
Wangadya’s appearance before COSASE comes amid parliamentary scrutiny of the Uganda Human Rights Commission and questions surrounding its leadership and operations.
Her assertion that she remains chairperson effectively settles, from her account, the question of whether she currently holds the position: she says she does, following the President’s rejection of her resignation and subsequent directive to resume her duties.
