Photo: Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, President Museveni’s son.
Ugandan President Museveni’s son declares intention to run for president
The son of Uganda’s ageing leader, Yoweri Museveni, made his intentions public to run for the country’s presidential seat in 2026, giving a timeline to replace his father who has ruled for 37 years.
Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the 48-year-old army general, is currently a special presidential advisor for special operations, known for firing off controversial tweets that have earned him reprimands from his father.
Uganda’s opposition has long accused Museveni of seeking to impose a monarchy on Uganda and claimed he was grooming his son to take over from him but Museveni has denied such accusations.
Kainerugaba quickly deleted the messages about his presidential aspirations, which he posted to Twitter late on Wednesday.
“You wanted me to say it forever! Okay, in the name of Jesus Christ my God, in the name of all the young people of Uganda and the world and in the name of our great revolution, I will stand for the Presidency in 2026,” Kainerugaba wrote.
In another tweet, he expressed his impatience at waiting so long to replace his father.
“The Prime Minister of the UK is 42 years old, and the Prime Minister of Finland is 37 years. Some of us are hitting 50 years old. We are tired of waiting forever,” he said.
Kainerugaba previously served as commander of land forces but was removed from that position after threatening to invade neighbouring Kenya, which he later said was a joke.
Reuters news agency reports that the senior Museveni has not yet made his intentions known concerning the 2026 elections, however, his supporters have encouraged him to recontest again.
