You Don’t Own Busoga,” Museveni Rebukes Kadaga

“You Don’t Own Busoga,” Museveni Rebukes Kadaga

During an NRM NEC meeting held last evening, President Yoweri Museveni rejected First Deputy Prime Minister Rebecca Kadaga’s suggestion that she holds exclusive sway over the Busoga region.

Kadaga, a long-serving party stalwart who began her political career as an LC-I chairperson in 1999, expressed frustration that her decades of loyalty to the NRM seem overlooked in favor of Speaker Anita Among, whom she noted has only been active in the party for three years.

“If this position goes to a contest, it will cause serious problems in my community … People here might think you are fighting a bigger community, not an individual.”

Museveni responded sharply, cautioning against portraying Busoga as beholden to a single leader.

“Rebecca, you do not own Busoga. It isn’t correct to suggest that the Basoga owe their loyalty to you alone. That’s misleading.”

He reminded attendees of his historical defense of the Basoga people, referencing how the NRA and FRONASA avenged atrocities against their leaders under past regimes. He cited figures such as Ali Balunywa, an Administrative Secretary killed in 1972, and Shaban Kirunda Nkutu, a minister executed during the Amin era, to underscore a collective struggle and unity that predated partisan politics.

The NEC concluded by approving a primary election between Kadaga and Among, to be held at the party’s forthcoming national delegates conference.

Note: This article is a report of statements made during a party meeting and is provided for informational purposes.