On September 8, 1967, the Ugandan government promulgated its third constitution, which inserted the word "Republic" before the name of the country and abolished all traditional rulers and all local legislatures.
The 'Republican' constitution abolished the numerous kingdoms that had been given strong powers of self-government by the country's first constitution in 1962 adopted after independence.
Such supreme law-affected monarchies included the kingdoms of Buganda, Bunyoro, Acoli, Tooro and Ankole, and Busoga, which were until 1967 permitted to retain their own legislatures.
As Apollo Milton Obote, the Ugandan president under whom the "Republican" constitution was adopted, noted, the move laid the foundation for the future of the nation.
"This country came face-to-face with the truth on September 8, 1967, that our destiny was in building for our future generation and an integrated and everlasting home. It is the spirit of equality and unity that we must now take into the fourth year of our republicanism," Obote said in 1970.
The third constitution has been suspended either partially or completely several times in its 18-year history. Thus, the third president of Uganda, Idi Amin (1971-1979), abolished the supremacy of the constitution, which paved the way for him to rule through decrees.
It was revived at the end of 1980, and after coming to power in 1986, the National Resistance Army, led by Yoweri Museveni, reaffirmed the supremacy of the 1967 constitution but partially suspended it.
Finally, in 1995, Uganda adopted its fourth constitution. The constitution, which is still in force today, emphasized the republican character of the East African state prescribed in the 1967 constitution. Although the 1995 supreme law restored traditional monarchies, their powers were reduced to cultural matters only.