PROFILE: Who exactly is Jacob Oulanyah, the man who beat Kadaga to become Uganda’s 11th Parliament speaker?

Jacob Oulanyah L’Okori is a Ugandan agricultural economist, lawyer and politician.

He was the Deputy Speaker of the Ugandan parliament from May 2011 to May 2021.

He was elected Speaker of the 11th pariament, and will be the head of the legislative arm of government until 2026.

Oulanyah is the member of parliament representing  Omoro County constituency.

He was born in the  Gulu District, on 23 March 1965.

Education

He attended St. Joseph’s College Layibi, Dr. Obote College Boroboro, and Kololo Senior Secondary School for his O-Level and A-Level education.

In 1988, he joined Makerere University, the oldest university in the East African Community, where he studied agricultural economics.

He graduated in 1991 with a Bachelor of Arts in that subject.

That same year, he entered law school, also at Makerere University, graduating in 1994 with a Bachelor of Laws degree.

He served as speaker of the university students’ guild during his stay at Makerere.

In 1995, he attended the Law Development Centre (LDC), where he obtained a postgraduate diploma in legal practice

Career

Following his graduation from the LDC, Oulanyah worked as a lecturer at the centre.

During the same timeframe, he began private law practice at the law firm of Oulanyah, Onoria & Company Advocates.

In 2001, he entered politics by successfully contesting for the parliamentary seat of Omoro County in Gulu District under the no-party arrangement constitutionally referred to as the Movement Political System.

He was however a cardholder of the Uganda People’s Congress (UPC).

In 2005, he chaired the legal and parliamentary affairs committee that handled the constitutional amendment bill that proposed the lifting of the presidential term limits.

He also participated in the peace talks between the government of Uganda and the Lord’s Resistance Army rebels. 

In 2006, standing as a UPC candidate, he lost his re-election bid.

In July 2006, he quit the UPC and joined the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM).

In 2008 he served as the chairman of the commission of inquiry into the controversial sub-lease of Kisekka Market, one of the municipal markets in the city of Kampala.

In March 2011, Oulanyah was elected to represent Omoro County, Gulu District, in the Ninth Parliament, this time on the NRM ticket.

He was elected as Deputy Speaker of Parliament on 19 May 2011.

He also sat on the Appointments Committee as vice chairperson. This Committee reviews all Cabinet appointments by the President and may approve or reject an appointment.

He was also associated with the
International advisory board of the Global Majority, an international organization committed to the promotion of non-violent conflict management through education, training, networking and advocacy.

He also served as Co-Rapporteur on the Committee of Political Affairs, African. Caribbean and Pacific group of states,(ACP/EU).

May 24, 2021: Elected 11th Parliament speaker, becoming the third most important person in the land, after President Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa Museveni and his vice president.

Additional reporting: courtesy