Who is Akol Anthony? Flash Uganda Media looks at his biography, age, wife, family, tribe, relationship with Mrs Lucky Lakaraber, Samuel Odonga Otto, Muhammad Ssegirinya and Allan Ssewanyana, the Acholi Parliamentary Group, early life and education of the current Kilak North constituency MP in Uganda.
Akol Anthony is a Ugandan politician and Member of Parliament. He is the current representative of the Kilak North constituency in the parliament of Uganda.
He was elected as the leader of the Acholi Parliamentary Group (APG) in July 2021 for a two-and-a-half-year term.
Early life and Education
Akol Anthony was born in Kilak, Amuru District, Northern Uganda. He is married to Mrs Lucky Lakaraber.
Career and Professional Work Experience
In July 2021, he was elected as the leader of the Acholi Parliamentary Group (APG) with 11 votes, defeating Catherine Lamwaka, the Omoro District Woman Member of Parliament, who received 10 votes.
He also garnered 6,534 votes and won the 2021 general elections representing his constituency again. He was followed by NRM’s Ojera who garnered 6366 votes
Achievements and Awards
Akol was elected to the parliament on the Forum for Democratic Change ticket and serves on the Human Rights, Finance and Planning, and Economic Development committees.
Controversies
Akol was injured in a nasty accident in April 2019 when his vehicle collided with a stray cow crossing the highway in Wakisanyi village, Kiryandongo district.
In March 2020, MP Anthony Akol was suspended from parliament after revealing that he was not screened at Entebbe Airport upon his return from South Korea, one of the countries greatly affected by Coronavirus.
On January 30, 2020, Akol got into a fight with his colleague from Aruu County, Samuel Odonga Otto, in the parliament’s pigeon hall lobby.
Following the fight, Akol told the press that he only defended himself against his colleague’s punch, describing himself as a heavyweight and claiming that if he had punched Otto, he would have been knocked out.
Hon. Akol and Hon. Odonga Otto was fighting over the fraudulent sale of 10,000 acres of land in Lakwang, Amuru district, for the establishment of the Madhvani sugar factory.
Since 2006, the government of Uganda had designated this land for Amuru Sugar Works Ltd to build a sugar factory in Lakang, but landowners had opposed the move and had taken the government to court.
In August 2016, Akol said he received a ’50kg bag of sugar and UGX1m’ gift to support a private member’s Bill that would raise the age limit for judicial officers. He received the ‘gift’ at the Crested Crane Hotel during a meeting disguised as a Parliamentary forum on food security.
Hon. Akol accused Hon. Samuel Odonga Otto of tarnishing his name in his constituency by collecting money intended for compensation of former occupants of the Amuru sugar plant land.
Hon. Otto however claimed that the Acholi Parliamentary Group (APG) believed that land should be leased rather than sold outright, and he accused Hon. Akol of conspiring with the government to sell communal land. Hon. Otto admitted to having brought the matter up in front of their voters because they had betrayed the Amuru electorate.
Hon. Akol allegedly received more than Shs.300m. He claimed that he received only monetary compensation for his land and not community land. Mr Otto was rushed to Nakasero hospital after the fight.
He however claimed that Hon. Sekitoeleko Kafeero and Iganga MP Peter Mugema were central to organizing the meeting at which he was supposed to receive UGX10 million, a figure that was reduced because he is an opposition MP.
Akol has since returned the ’50kg bag of sugar and UGX1m’ gift through the office of the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament.
In the 2021 general elections, Hon. Akol won Ojera by 168 votes leaving Ojera dissatisfied. He, therefore, filed a petition to the high court claiming to be the rightful winner of the elections. He asked the high court to declare him the winner or cancel the already concluded elections and organize another election.
The high court however dismissed Ojera’s petition with costs citing that he had insufficient information to sustain his allegations against Hon. Akol thus declaring Hon. Akol is the rightful representative of Kilak County North.
The opposition leader Matthias Mpuuga criticized Anthony Akol of FDC for failing to enforce the boycott.
In response to the widespread abuses of human rights, including torture, kidnappings, and the ongoing refusal of bail to colleagues Muhammad Ssegirinya and Allan Ssewanyana in early 2022, the opposition in Parliament organised a two-week strike.
Only Akol, a member of the opposition was seen attending the plenary.
Akol however, hit back at Mpuuga saying that he lacked focus and didn’t care about Acholi’s issues but only issues that involved him.
Editor’s Note: Please contact [email protected] if you find any of the content to be inaccurate or outdated.
