By BMWhat was meant to be a routine National Executive Committee (NEC) campaign meeting at State House Entebbe yesterday turned into a full-blown political inferno, as 2nd Deputy Prime Minister Rebecca Kadaga tore into both her rival and her own party, accusing the National Resistance Movement (NRM) of betraying its veterans and rewarding political opportunism.
The meeting, presided over by NRM National Chairman and President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, was called to allow campaign presentations for the position of 2nd National Chairperson (Female), a powerful internal party seat that pits two political titans against each other: Speaker of Parliament Rt Hon. Anita Among, and the long-serving party stalwart, Hon. Rebecca Kadaga.
Instead of unity, the NEC tent witnessed a shocking unraveling of internal fault lines as Kadaga delivered a blistering attack that sent ripples across Uganda’s political landscape.
Kadaga’s Political Volcano: “Loyalty Means Nothing in This Party Anymore!”
Dressed in all her political authority, Kadaga took the microphone and, within minutes, detonated decades of pent-up frustration in a speech that insiders described as “raw, emotional, and dangerously bold.”
“I am pleased to speak today,” she began, calmly. “But let me be clear, I want to eliminate her.”
The gasps in the room were audible. But that was only the beginning.
“I have been in this party since inception,” Kadaga said. “From LC1 chairperson in Bulamuti to the National Resistance Council, I have never known another political home. And now I am being asked to step aside for someone who has only been in NRM for three years?”
As murmurs turned to shock, NRM Electoral Commission Chairperson Dr. Tanga Odoi attempted to cut her short, but was immediately shut down.
“No, no, no, don’t stop me,” Kadaga snapped, her voice rising. “Your Excellency, I was humiliated when I was removed as Speaker. I kept quiet. I remained loyal. But today, I am forced to say: this party has stopped valuing loyalty, integrity, and seniority.”
Museveni Tries to Restore Order as Kadaga Fires On
President Museveni, known for his patience in managing internal rifts, tried to intervene, asking the room to calm down. “Okay, stop, stop. Listen carefully, Listen carefully,” he said.
But Kadaga continued, now with a stinging warning.
“If this contest is meant to target me, then I want to say, Your Excellency, it will cause serious problems. People here may think you are fighting an individual but you are fighting a whole community.”
The implication was clear: Kadaga was drawing a line between personal political battles and wider regional implications, with observers saying she was hinting at unrest in her eastern power base.
Among Fires Back: “If You’re Old, Step Aside — The Party Will Survive!”
If Kadaga’s remarks shocked the room, Among’s rebuttal reignited the blaze.
Standing calm and composed, the Speaker of Parliament started by embracing her “outsider” status.
“Yes, I am new. But I bring results,” she said confidently. “I have mobilized more for the party in three years than some have in thirty.”
Among claimed she personally brought 10 opposition MPs to the NRM and questioned Kadaga’s loyalty during the 2021 elections.
“She speaks of loyalty, yet she left this party and contested as an independent,” Among fired. “Now she returns to lecture us on commitment? We must reward results, not nostalgia.”
Battle Lines Drawn: The Past vs. The Present
The NEC meeting spiraled into a generational confrontation, Kadaga representing the seasoned resistance-era elite, Among the emblem of the emerging Museveni inner circle.
“Being in the party longer doesn’t mean you’ve done more,” Among argued. “Age is not a qualification. Impact is.”
She dismissed Kadaga’s claims of being wrongfully ousted as Speaker, saying: “Leadership changes. If I can be Speaker of Parliament, one of the top arms of government, why can’t I sit in this chair too?”
Kadaga: “You Want Me Out Like You Did Last Time?”
With emotions running high, Kadaga revisited her removal from the Speaker’s position in 2021, a process she has rarely discussed publicly.
“I was humiliated. Publicly,” she said. “But I kept working for this party. I did not go to the media. I didn’t rebel. And this is how I’m rewarded?”
In a cutting remark that stunned many in the room, she added:
“So now you protect Hajji Moses Kigongo for being senior, but you say Kadaga must go? Really? Is this what fairness looks like?”
A House Divided And a President Cornered
By the end of the meeting, no consensus had been reached. Voting is expected in the coming days, but political analysts warn that the scars from this explosive session may not heal soon.
“This wasn’t a campaign, it was a civil war in yellow,” said one NEC delegate, speaking on condition of anonymity. “And Museveni knows it.”
The president, sources say, is deeply concerned about the long-term impact this power struggle could have on party unity especially with succession politics already quietly brewing beneath the surface.
What This Means for NRM and Uganda
While many viewed the Among-Kadaga race as a routine internal affair, yesterday’s showdown proved it’s anything but.
It revealed a party struggling to reconcile its revolutionary past with its increasingly transactional present.
Kadaga’s rage was not just personal it was symbolic of an old guard feeling cast aside.
Among’s confidence was not just ambition it was the boldness of a new generation determined to claim its place.
As the party heads into voting, one thing is clear: the NRM may never be the same again.
