Bugabula South Member of Parliament, Maurice Kibalya has proposed the abolition of the long-standing policy granting female students an additional 1.5 entry points for admission into public universities.
The policy of awarding 1.5 bonus points to female students applying to public universities has been in place since 1990, aiming to increase female representation in higher education, and has led to a significant increase in female enrollment.
However, MP Kibalya argues that Ugandan women are now “empowered enough” and that the practice, which was introduced to bridge the gender gap in higher education, has outlived its relevance.
“The other day I was telling the Deputy Speaker that very soon I want to bring a motion and we’ll move the 1.5 entry points for girls at campus. For how long shall we empower you? If we can empower you and you don’t reach a level where you are supposed to feel now you have reached. So, are we going to empower you endlessly until this world comes to an end? Oh, so we must have a time,” Kibalya said.
Kibalya made the remarks during a press briefing at Parliament, organized by the Uganda Women Parliamentary Association (UWOPA) as part of activities to commemorate International Women’s Day.
The policy, introduced in the 1990s, was aimed at increasing female representation in higher education by compensating for historical gender disparities.
However, Kibalya believes that continued affirmative action without a clear end date could be unfair to male students who also face academic challenges.
He stated that while the policy initially served a purpose, it has continued indefinitely without a clear review process, despite the progress women have made in education and leadership.
Additionally, Kibalya also proposed an amendment to limit the tenure of district woman representatives in Parliament, stating that no one should serve more than three terms to allow opportunities for new leaders.
“Same story I’m about to share with my chairperson of UWOPA. Very soon we want to have an amendment. You only become a woman representative either twice or three times in a district. From there, leave space for others also to come up because the formulators of this had a reason as to why they put it there. They wanted to empower ladies. For you, you become a woman empowerment if you are in that position for 30 years,” he added.
He also urged women in Uganda to reflect on the content they share online and the amount of time they spend at social events, arguing that these factors have contributed to the breakdown of marriages.
“TikTok is not private. It’s for everybody. But you take some pictures that are very disturbing. Marriages have ended because the ladies go for birthday parties. When you’re on your birthday, you forget you are married at home. You begin doing things that at the end of the day, the man will wonder, is this my wife or somebody’s girlfriend? So, I think let us also tread within the line so that we don’t blame others, but we blame ourselves,”he said.
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