By Faridah N Kulumba
Africa-Press – Uganda. The President of Uganda Yoweri Kaguta Museveni on 5th July 2025 was nominated as the sole presidential candidate of the ruling party the National Resistance Movement (NRM) as flag bearer in the coming 2026 general election. President Museveni came to power on 26 January 1986, when he overthrew the then president Milton Obote”s government. This followed a guerilla war that lasted five years. He will be seeking a seventh consecutive five-year term. He was nominated by the NRM at a meeting held in the national capital of Kampala after being unopposed. Through a post on the social media platform X, the NRM also confirmed that Museveni will continue to serve as the party’s national chairman for another five years.
Is he eligible?
According to the Constitution of Uganda Museveni qualifies to seek another term. In 2005, the Ugandan constitution was amended and the term limits were removed. That gives Museveni a green light to seek a 7th Term. In 2026 Museveni will be 82 years old, which does not disqualify him because in 2017 Uganda’s Constitution was amended and the removal of the previous upper age limit of 75 years was announced.
The rematch
Museveni’s recent nomination means that he will again face his strongest challenger in a decade Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine—a former musician who has emerged as a prominent opposition leader. Wine was the runner-up in the 2021 presidential elections, which he claimed was marred by widespread fraud, including vote tampering and state-led intimidation of voters and opposition supporters. In June Bobi Wine’s political party, the National Unity Platform (NUP) announced that he returned his expression of interest forms to contest as the party’s presidential flag bearer in the next year’s election. This happened just a few days after the NRM confirmed that President Museveni will pick nomination forms.
Analysts view the early emergence of the two leading contenders as a sign that Uganda’s 2026 elections will likely be dominated by entrenched narratives of continuity versus change, security versus freedom, and institutional control versus popular legitimacy.In the past general election, Museveni secured 6,042,898 votes (58.38%) against Bobi Wine, who polled 3,631,437 votes (35.08%). However, the aftermath of the election was marred by disputes and allegations of irregularities. Last year, Museveni accused the NUP of rigging the 2021 election, claiming the party fraudulently gained an extra one million votes. In defence, the NUP called for an independent and transparent audit of the 2021 election. The opposition demanded the audit be conducted by an international, neutral agency to scrutinize the election process.
Is Museveni the only person with Uganda’s visions
A few days prior to President Museveni’s 80 years birthday celebration, his party supporters headed by the head of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) Hajjat Hadijah Namyalo launched a campaign that intends to keep Musevini in power for more years dubbed as ‘Say-No-to-Forceful-Transition’. This followed some NRM supporters gathering at the Office of the National Chairman (ONC-Kyambogo) to protest against a purported transition that loomed in political circles aimed at forcing President Museveni out of power ahead of the 2026 general elections. The NRM supporters who call themselves Museveni’s grandchildren (Bazzukulu) argue that it’s not yet the right time for President Museveni to step down as he still has a lot to accomplish in his “manifesto.”However, John Mubiru a political analyst in an interview with Africa-Press said President Museveni being nominated as NRM sole candidate in the party that has more than 18 million supporters for the past terms is a clear indicator that the party was built on only one person Museveni. Adding that the party is likely to face a hard time in the future.
President Museveni after returning the nomination forms and being nominated on Saturday, he gave an acceptance speech, saying that he had responded to the call of NRM supporters who asked him to seek a 7th term and, if elected, would press ahead with his mission to turn Uganda into a “high middle income country. But Mubiru refuted Museveni ‘s statement by saying that if Museveni wanted change in Uganda, he would not have amended the constitution in 2005 and in 2018. Whereas the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Butambala District Haji Ahmed Kateregga Musaazi, also a veteran journalist. Told Africa-Press said: – NRM is a liberation movement, a guerilla movement, a movement of freedom fighters and not a traditional party like Conservative Party and Labour party in UK or Republican Party or Democratic Party in the United States (USA). Revolutionary leaders don’t retire it is only death that separate them from their countries and their people and President Yoweri Museveni is a revolutionary leader. “Having said that, President Museveni is more popular that even NRM and it is therefore suicidal for NRM to drop a leader with the magnet,” said Haji Kateregga.
Thirdly, Ugandans are used to long reigns, as symbols and guarantees stability and development. “We all admire the glorious Victorian age of the 19th century when the sun never set on the British empire. Here in Uganda, we are proud of Emirembe Emiteesa (Muteesa l 1856-1884) and Muteesa ll 1939-1969).” He added that Museveni is the father of the region as President William Ruto said and President Paul Jagame has wished him victory, this evening 6th July 2025. “On the list Museveni era, our constitution is very categorical on death, resignation its removal of the President. There will be no crisis, God willing.”
Effects of overstaying in power
In November 2024, Bobi Wine expressed concern over the extended leadership of President Museveni, saying that his overstay in power is the countries’ major challenge. According to Bobi Wine the prolonged rule by President Museveni has led to unmet promises and widespread dissatisfaction among Ugandans. Gen Museveni celebrated his 80th birthday on 15th September last year and a few months before the 2026 general elections.
After the 2021 general elections the NRM suffered a humiliating defeat in the central region by the youngest opposition political party, NUP. The elections turned out differently for the NRM and Museveni himself. His popular support in Buganda massively shrunk with all NRM ministers losing their parliamentary seats. In February 2024, Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Norbert Mao advised his boss President Museveni to prepare for a peaceful transition of power, or risk dragging the country back into the dark past of civil strife and political turmoil. Mao’s concern was Uganda has never experienced any peaceful change of power, with each transition resulting in blood, which overly retards the country’s progression. He noted that it is high Museveni creates an alternative to the past trends set by his predecessors.
Uganda’s major political challenges started way back between 1966 and 1971, after the independence when the first and last ceremonial president of the Buganda Kabaka (King) Edward Muteesa II was overthrown by his executive prime minister Milton Obote. Since then, Uganda has never had a peaceful transition of political power. Since independence, the peaceful transition of power in Uganda is still elusive. The East African country is still entangled in cycles of bloodshed that have accompanied change from one regime to another. From President Museveni in the 1980s, the promise of national deliverance from the curse of violent government change is still alive. Some politicians, most especially from the opposition side, have tried to debate about it for years but still, there is no change. Museveni, also the longest serving president of Uganda who has been in power for almost 40 years believes that changing presidents is not the solution to Uganda’s problem.
On 14th December 2022, when President Museveni was being interviewed by journalist Remmy Bahati in Washington D.C..one of the key questions was asked was whether Uganda would ever have a peaceful transition of power. The interviewer brought up this question in a way of comparing Uganda and the US. President Museveni was asked why Uganda never witnessed any peaceful transfer of power since the country got its independence in 1962, and how he feels about Joe Biden being the seventh American President since Museveni captured power in 1986.His answer was, the United States was founded in 1623. The then United Colonies of America gained independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776, and following the Declaration of Independence, Congress renamed the country the United States of America. And America did not even get to have elections until 1789. He questioned how many years had passed. Yet Uganda is having elections every five years.
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