As Uganda approaches the 2026 General Election, now is the best time to examine the performance of the 556 Members of Parliament (MPs) in the 11th Parliament, inaugurated in 2021.
As representatives of the over 51.4 million Ugandans, the MPs have the mandate to amplify the voices of the citizens, advocate for development and exercise accountability.
Nonetheless, matters related to their performance, competence levels, and house size are an affirmation of the need to reform.
The 1995 Constitution vests MPs with key responsibilities: legislating to advance government and development, representing constituents by raising their issues; scrutinizing the National Budget and investigating abuse of public resources, for instance by committees such as the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), and holding the Judiciary and Executive to account, as illustrated by, for example calls for an Auditor General’s report on sports funding in the aftermath of the Uganda Cranes’ 2024 Chan campaign.
The 11th Parliament has gained some points, including a bipartisan agreement to adopt 2025 Rules of Procedure aiming to streamline proceeding.
However, a 2024 Afrobarometer survey finds 49 percent of the population is satisfied by the MPs’ performance. Some of the respondents accused the MPs of corruption (47 percent believe “most” or “all” MPs are corrupt vs 25 percent in 2005).
Just 15 percent of the respondents said MPs listen “often”, although only 17 percent interact with them every year. Scandals especially those involving MPs diminish people’s confidence in their representatives. MPs earn more than Shs35 million a month, plus other perks.
Yet in a 2024 scorecard on Parliament by Africa Leadership Institute, they remarked lower than average MP plenary attendance, at 60 percent. With 556 MPs-one per 92,000 citizens-the House is among Africa’s largest, with the cost of maintaining such a large number of legislators rising from Shs673 billion (2020/2021) to Shs979 billion (2024/2025).
A 2025 Constitutional Court ruling deemed some constituencies unconstitutional. While some argue the size ensures effective representation (34 percent women MPs), critics highlight stalled projects. Competence is debated: despite expertise, low attendance and party-line voting persist.
A 2025 IGAD dialogue praised women MPs for advancing land rights, yet 75 percent want the President accountable to Parliament, although 42 percent say he ignores it.
Representation is uneven-58 percent view elections as reflecting voter will, but 48 percent feel neglected post-elections, with 41 percent of MP budgets spent on social contributions like funerals.
Lastly, MPs must revive Parliament with dedication to monitoring, representation, and ability to serve the people above personal interest.
Citizens must vote wisely, removing underperforming MPs by scorecards and push for reforms like term limits on non-performers. With 92,000+ citizens per MP, the task is daunting, but underperformance cannot be tolerated.
As 2026 approaches, a streamlined and efficient Parliament can realise prosperity so that no MP departs without leaving something behind. Uganda does not deserve any less.