{UAH} SEXUAL HARASSMENT PUSHES UGANDAN WOMAN FROM POLITICS

SEXUAL HARASSMENT PUSHES UGANDAN WOMAN FROM POLITICS

A youthful woman who had harbored parliamentary aspirations for many years of her time has finally given up on contesting citing sexual harassment and advances from top politicians in parliament and state house. The Ballad has in the past year been doing research and investigations into the allegations of sexual harassment especially in parliament and the findings are not only annoying but also disappointing.

As women continue to battle the double discrimination posed on them by being female and by societal attitudes and perceptions, a lot more than seemingly unusual is striking the women movement.

In an interview with this media house, Akullo Patricia Roy, intimated how she had harbored political ambitions for many years of her life and later forced to abandon them as sexual demands from well-established and highly placed male politicians in the corridors of power in the office of the president and parliament threatened to first bed her before helping her achieve her objective.

Patricia intended to run on the NRM ticket as the district woman member of parliament Dokolo, district against the famous Cicilia Ogwal but said she could not handle the pressure from many top party members who kept on pestering her for sex. In fear of her life, she gave up and later took up an international job with the United Nations. "It was too much, I couldn't handle that. I feared for my life" she is quoted in a Facebook message to one of the members of our investigations team. She also refuted claims that she gave up with ambitions because she had gotten an international job and wasn't sure of going through.

Last year, the Kampala Woman Member of Parliament, Hon. Nagayi Nabila Sempala expressed concern over growing sexual harassment by their male counter parts in parliament. Without naming the culprits, Ms Naggayi said society pities women to the extent that even when female legislators are more educated than their male counterparts, the former are still looked at as sex objects. "You see them (male MPs) trying hard to convince you, but I can be crude (to the MPs) and I tell them that they cannot afford me. No one can write a six-month cheque for me," Ms Naggayi while speaking at an event organized MEMPROW Uganda.

In a similar matter, our investigations and research have established that it is not only women members of parliament who undergo sexual harassment in parliament, but many of the employees. In an interview with one of the former personal assistant to one of the members of parliament from Sebei region, she disclosed to The Ballad how interns, personal assistants and other low ranking employees in parliament are forced to have sex either in promises of promotion or getting an internship placement. This was backed up by one of the consultants currently working in parliament who also emphasized that many of the MPs and even cabinet ministers have tried to lure her into sex but she has remained hard.

"By now I would be having a permanent job in parliament, but because I have refused to pay heed to sexual advances from the authorities that give jobs, I am still a part time employee with parliament" the source that preferred anonymity stated.

We also learnt that a female police officer lost her job in parliament after she refused to give in into the sexual demands of her boss. It is believed that she could have lost her job as a police officer since most of the people who used to see her in the parliamentary premises could no longer. In an attempt to contact the said police officer, he could not be found, probably could have been transferred.

"One time, a certain member of parliament gave me 250,000 Uganda shillings saying he wanted to have sex with me in his office and I left parliament shortly without him succeeding. I took the money because I didn't ask for it, but promised myself that I would not have sex with him" a former employee of parliament revealed.

Our investigations have also found out that if not, almost all students who go to parliament have been sexually exploited. This they say happens at the time of field work where they are either taken to lodges or have it in the cars. We also found out that most of the commissioners in parliament use their positions to give jobs to their relatives and those who are not relatives are given jobs on agreement that they shall be giving them the sex as a sign of appreciation. "To be promoted in parliament, she have to sleep with your boss" one of the workers in parliament revealed.

The most paining bit of it is that, many of the members of parliament are believed to be HIV/AIDS positive and the fate of the interns and most of the female employees is something to worry about. They begin by buying you lunch in the parliament's canteen and before you get to know, they are asking for sex. Even old men who are fit to be your grandparents and not even ashamed to saying they want to sleep with you" one bitter employee at parliament said angrily.

"Most of them ask for leave from parliament claiming they have international trips yet they are going to South Africa for blood transplant" she added.

Our attempts to get a response from some of the commissioners in parliament were futile as many of them claimed to be busy and shying away from responding to the issues on the ground that they were not the right persons to answer the questions.

If you need more on these investigations, please send us an email on balladmagazine@gmail.com 

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H.OGWAPITI
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"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that  we are to stand by the president right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic  and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
---Theodore Roosevelt

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