By Diana N Kintu
Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has moved to calm growing competition within the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), urging discipline, restraint, and loyalty as the party rallied behind a unified leadership line for Uganda’s 12th Parliament.
Addressing newly elected NRM legislators during the party’s first Parliamentary Caucus meeting at State House Entebbe, President Museveni cautioned members against what he described as growing political impatience and excessive ambition for top offices.
“When we were fighting, people did not express interest by saying they wanted to fight. You went where you were told to go,” Museveni told legislators. “Today, because there is peace, many people are expressing interest in contesting positions. Democracy is good, but we should remain disciplined.”
The remarks came at a politically significant moment, as the NRM Central Executive Committee (CEC) unveiled its official candidates for the top leadership positions in Parliament, effectively shaping the direction of the incoming House before formal voting began.
CEC endorsed Jacob Marksons Oboth Oboth as the ruling party’s candidate for Speaker of Parliament, describing him as a legally grounded, calm, and unifying figure capable of steering Parliament through a new political phase.
For Deputy Speaker, the committee endorsed Thomas Tayebwa, citing his experience, mobilisation strength within the party, institutional memory, and youthful leadership.
The caucus later adopted both recommendations in what observers viewed as a carefully managed display of party consensus and internal cohesion.
Behind the endorsements, however, Museveni’s message carried a broader warning to party members: leadership, he suggested, should not become a battleground for personal ambition.
The veteran leader advised politicians to rise steadily through service and responsibility rather than rushing for powerful offices.
“Politics should be about what is to be done, why it should be done, and how it should be done,” Museveni said.
“You start with the diagnosis of the problems of the people you are leading and then prescribe the treatment.”
He also revisited Uganda’s troubled political history, warning legislators against sectarian politics rooted in tribal or religious divisions, which he said weakened previous generations of leadership and distracted the country from national transformation.
Earlier in the meeting, Museveni congratulated the newly elected Members of Parliament and thanked them for supporting both the NRM and his leadership.
“I want to congratulate all of you on being elected to Parliament,” he said. “You now have an opportunity to contribute to your country.”
In a development that underscored the party’s push for unity, all other aspirants reportedly stepped down in favour of Oboth and Tayebwa, avoiding what could have evolved into a divisive internal contest.
The outcome leaves the NRM entering the 12th Parliament with a consolidated leadership front while reaffirming Museveni’s enduring influence over the party’s political direction and internal power structure.