Parliament is set to convene a special sitting on Monday, January 22, 2024, to pay tribute to the late Dokolo Woman MP, Cecilia Ogwal. The 77-year-old Forum for Democratic (FDC) stalwart passed away in India on Thursday while undergoing cancer-related treatment.
As outlined in a tentative program by Speaker Anita Annet Among, Ogwal’s body is expected to return to the country on Sunday. On the following day, her body will be received at Parliament by Speaker Among, preceding the plenary session scheduled to commence at noon.
Simultaneously, a vigil will be held at Ogwal’s Bugolobi residence, after which her body will be transported to her upcountry home.
In a related context, Speaker Among indirectly addressed an attempt by the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) to take control of Cecilia Ogwal’s burial arrangements away from Parliament. The Speaker emphasized that as an MP, Ogwal belonged to the entire country, and the Administration of Parliament Act places the responsibility for all sitting MPs, living or deceased, in the hands of the Parliamentary Commission.
Among stated, “The parliamentary commission is under obligation to take center stage in coordinating the burial arrangements of our departed mother, mentor with the family. It is also a long tradition in Parliament that the institution takes center stage in organizing the sendoff of a sitting Member of Parliament, and Imat [Ogwal] has been a sitting Member of Parliament and a woman representative of Dokolo.”
