By Mulengera Reporters
Recently, Energy Minister Dr. Canon Ruth Nankabirwa returned from the US and drove straight to Hotel Africana where she joined AG Kiwanuka Kiryowa and new Buganda CEC member Haruna Kasolo to induct and energize NRM MP slots flag bearers for 2026.
The Africana retreat focussed on strategizing how NRM and Museveni can recapture Buganda and Nankabirwa asserted that it will be strange for people in Kabaka’s region to continue voting for the opposition NUP at the time even the Diaspora has finally embraced NRM and Musevenism.
The former Kiboga Woman MP, who was returning from the UNAA annual event, claimed that the ruling party candidates were these days going through unopposed to dominate the executive positions on the executive of the association which unites and brings together Ugandans living and working in North America.
“We are now effectively dominating UNAA to the extent that many of our NRM candidates have gone through unopposed which means those people of Bobi Wine don’t exist out there anymore. We have taken over that platform and have effectively edged them out and I’m sure we are going to replicate this even in Buganda come 2026,” Nankabirwa declared to a gathering that had NRM Deputy Secretary General Rose Namayanja among other heavyweights.
Nankabirwa, who for years has been joining fellow big people from government to travel to North America for the annual UNAA Convention, said she was proud that their relentless efforts had finally paid off to the extent that UNAA, which used to be a platform dominated by anti-Museveni protests and demonstrations aimed at shaming Uganda and its government, is these days full of positive-minded Ugandans who act responsibly by marketing the country’s tourism potential besides wooing wealthy foreign investors to bring millions of dollars into the country.
“We are grateful for all this as people leading this effort of Buganda on Museveni. Let the UNAA accomplishment motivate us to collectively become determined and work towards ensuring that the NUP wave that plagued our region in 2021 doesn’t happen again,” rallied Nankabirwa who along with AG Kiryowa is the patron of the “Buganda on Museveni” campaign initiative which is being spearheaded by a group of 32 NRM MPs led by Buvuma County MP Robert Migadde.
M7 BEEN STRESSED ENOUGH:
Nankabirwa also implored NRM flag bearers and those they defeated to bury hatchet and work together like never before to avoid bringing any political stress to Gen Museveni who, at 81 years, she said is an old man who deserves to relax and lead a stress-free life.
She said the veteran leader from Rwakitura had done his best and demonstrated consistent and genuine love for Buganda region whereby he still gave them 14 Ministers even after the political humiliation that NUP’s Robert Kyagulanyi occasioned onto him in 2021.
Nankabirwa said she wasn’t ready to face a stressed Museveni simply because the NRM leadership in Buganda fails to defeat NUP this time round. She said that fear to stress, disappoint and demoralize Museveni is the reason why she was getting involved in the 2026 campaigns “otherwise I’m personally a retired person and not in elective politics anymore.”
She told the flag bearers, those they defeated and ruling party district chairpersons present that she feels sorry for those still having to compete for elective positions in the current political environment and doesn’t envy being in their position at all.
“You should appreciate that we are here just to help you otherwise I wouldn’t be here because I don’t owe any of you anything. I’m in this because of my President. It’s for Mzee’s vote that I continue to be involved in these things. You had better take advantage of that and we work together. I, just like KK, don’t have any other constituency. My only constituency is Mzee because I’m in Cabinet because of his vote and not for anything else. That old man has done a lot for this country and I’m in this because I hate to see him stressed in anymore.” She said endless wrangling among NRM cadres is one of the things that stress Museveni the most.
Nankabirwa explained that there is nothing that stresses Museveni about the forthcoming campaigning season like the unwarranted infighting among NRM cadres, especially between flag bearers and NRM-leaning independents.
“But gratefully, this is something all of us seated here have control over. Let’s rally behind flag bearers and make Mzee proud once again,” said Nankabirwa making it clear that the ongoing humiliation and rejection of NRM in Buganda hurts and costs individual party leaders and members more than it affects Gen YK Museveni as a person.
She made it clear that the eventual defeat and total obliteration of NRM from State House by the opposition is one loss that will hurt and diminish individual party leaders, cadres and members than the person of President Museveni. This means that they should work harder than Museveni to ensure that the 2021 wave isn’t replicated in 2026. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
