‘FOR CONTINUITY, MUHOOZI WILL BE OUR CANDIDATE’ Succession Battle Gathers Pace As NRM Elderly Throw Weight Behind Muhoozi, PLU Warns Namyalo Against Attacking CDF’s 2031 Presidential Ambitions

Former Vice-President Edward Ssekandi has thrown his weight behind Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s 2031 presidential bid, becoming the latest veteran NRM figure to publicly endorse the CDF.

Ssekandi, who also served as Speaker of Parliament, reportedly visited the PLU offices and signed the organisation’s endorsement book before telling PLU General Secretary Fadil Twalla that “for continuity, Gen Muhoozi will be our candidate.”

His endorsement follows that of former Vice-President Prof Gilbert Bukenya, who backed Muhoozi about three weeks ago.

The endorsements come as PLU intensifies its campaign to mobilise support for Muhoozi’s stated intention to contest the presidency in 2031.

But the campaign has also opened a fresh political confrontation within the NRM.

Senior Presidential Adviser Hajjat Hadijja Namyalo criticised the Muhoozi succession project while speaking in Mbale, warning that Uganda was not a monarchy and pointing to President Yoweri Museveni’s mandate through 2031.

PLU responded sharply, with Twalla accusing Namyalo of making “unsanctioned” remarks and warning her against provoking the organisation.

Twalla reiterated that Muhoozi would be on the ballot in 2031 and said Museveni would be his chief campaigner.

The exchange has brought the succession debate into sharper focus, with the CDF’s supporters presenting his bid as a question of continuity, while critics within the NRM continue to insist that Museveni remains the party’s presidential candidate for the current electoral cycle.

Ssekandi’s endorsement adds the voice of a former Speaker and Vice-President to the growing list of senior NRM figures publicly associating themselves with the Muhoozi project.

Ssekandi’s political journey

Ssekandi, born in Masaka in January 1943, is one of the longest-serving figures in Uganda’s contemporary political establishment. A lawyer by profession, he graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree and later obtained a Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre.

He began his professional career as a State Attorney before moving into legal education, where he taught at the Law Development Centre and later served in senior academic and administrative positions. He was also lead counsel for the Commission of Inquiry into Violations of Human Rights between 1986 and 1993.

Ssekandi was part of the Constituent Assembly that debated and produced the 1995 Constitution. He subsequently entered Parliament, representing Bukoto County Central, and served as Deputy Speaker before becoming Speaker in 2001.

He occupied the Speaker’s chair for a decade, until 2011, when President Yoweri Museveni appointed him Vice-President. He served as Vice-President from 2011 to 2021, before being succeeded by Jessica Alupo. His latest endorsement therefore carries the political weight of a former Speaker and former Vice-President who spent decades at the centre of the NRM administration.

Muhoozi’s presidential project

Gen Muhoozi, 52, is the son of President Yoweri Museveni and First Lady Janet Museveni. Born in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on April 24, 1974, he grew up partly in exile before returning to Uganda.

He attended schools in Tanzania, Kenya and Sweden and later studied at Kampala Parents School, King’s College Budo and St Mary’s College Kisubi. He subsequently pursued military training, including studies at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the United Kingdom and the United States Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth.

Muhoozi formally joined the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) in 1999 and was commissioned as an officer after graduating from Sandhurst in 2000.

His military career has taken him through several senior command positions. He commanded the Special Forces for periods, served as Commander of Land Forces and rose through the ranks to become a four-star general. In March 2024, he was appointed CDF, placing him at the head of the country’s armed forces. The UPDF currently lists him as Chief of Defence Forces.

His political ambitions, however, have developed alongside his military career. On September 1, PLU announced that Gen Muhoozi would seek the presidency in 2031. David Kabanda, the executive secretary in the office of the PLU chairman, said Muhoozi had instructed him to communicate his decision to run for the country’s highest office.

PLU has subsequently presented the 2031 bid as an NRM-linked project rather than an attempt to establish a separate political party. Gen Muhoozi is chairman of PLU, while the organisation describes itself as a civic organisation and says its political aspirations will be pursued through the NRM. PLU’s Fadil Twalla has said the organisation worked with the NRM in the previous election under the “TukoPamoja” arrangement and intends to maintain that relationship.

Museveni’s role

The Muhoozi project has also been closely linked to President Museveni. At the September 1 announcement, Kabanda said President Museveni had sanctioned his son’s presidential ambitions and would endorse him for the 2031 election.

The PLU leadership has gone further, saying Gen Muhoozi expects Museveni to be his chief campaigner.

In a political environment in which Museveni has been the dominant figure since 1986, the proposed transition has consequently become one of the major questions surrounding Uganda’s post-Museveni politics.

PLU has intensified its mobilisation, holding endorsement activities across different parts of the country. Five MPs from Ankole, for example, visited the PLU headquarters in September and endorsed Muhoozi for 2031. The organisation subsequently rolled out the endorsement exercise in the Sebei sub-region.

A new political chapter

Ssekandi’s endorsement therefore comes at a politically significant moment for the Muhoozi project.

The former Vice-President’s decision places another veteran NRM figure alongside Bukenya and other political, business and civic leaders who have publicly backed the CDF’s presidential ambitions.

PLU says its endorsement campaign is continuing nationwide, while Gen Muhoozi’s declared intention to contest in 2031 has already begun shaping debate inside the NRM about succession and political continuity.

For Ssekandi, whose political career spans the constitutional reform period, Parliament’s leadership and the vice-presidency, the endorsement represents his public position on the succession question.

For PLU, it provides another senior NRM name for an increasingly organised 2031 mobilisation campaign.

The central political question now is how the Muhoozi project will develop within the NRM between now and 2031, particularly as the party navigates the transition from Museveni’s long presidency to the next generation of leadership.

Author Profile

Stephen Kasozi Muwambi: Mr. Stephen Kasozi Muwambi is a seasoned crime investigative writer, majoring in judicial-based stories. His two decades’ experience as a senior investigative journalist has made him one of the best to reckon on in Uganda. He can also be reached via [email protected]