The government has called upon the general public to be vigilant in ensuring that all marriages are celebrated in a licensed place of worship.
Speaking during a sitting of Parliament chaired by Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulanyah on Thursday, 29 August 2019, the Deputy Attorney General, Hon Mwesigwa Rukutana said “those intending to get married should be prudent enough to find out if the prayer houses where the ceremony is to take place is licensed or not”.
Mr Rukutana stated that the registrar of marriages is the only office mandated to legalise marriages in the country. Uganda’s Marriage Act, Cap 251 prohibits the solemnization of any marriage in an unlicensed Church.
“Prayer houses are licensed to conduct and register marriages on behalf of the registrar,” he said.
Rukutana was responding to a concern raised by Hon. Betty Nambooze (FDC, Mukono Municipality), were media reports show that over 1,000 marriages that took place at Church of the Resurrection in Bugolobi between 2006 and 2016 were to be nullified, raising fears that families around the country may be affected.
Nambooze, according to Parliamentary press, said that if the marriages are nullified then this would bring problems to the children in terms of inheritance.
“If these marriages are cancelled then the children will have problems especially with inheritances where a spouse has passed on,” Nambooze said.
Mwesigwa Rukutana stated that the law has a provision that covers children’s inheritance.
“The affected couples should repeat their vows before the registrar of marriages,” he said.
“Under the law, both the legitimate and illegitimate children have the same rights in inheritance except for matrimonial property. So in this case the inheritance will not be affected,” he added.
See full list of Churches licensed to celebrate marriages (As of 11/7/2018) Here
