MBALE CITY : President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has called for the formation of a strong East African political federation, saying it would serve as the “centre of gravity for the African race” and ensure both economic and strategic security for the continent.
Speaking to journalists at Mbale State Lodge after concluding his presidential campaign trail in the Sebei Sub-region, the National Resistance Movement (NRM) presidential candidate criticized African elites including professors, journalists, and political leaders for neglecting serious national and continental issues in favor of trivial debates.
“Our elites don’t talk about real issues like markets, security, and development,” President Museveni said. He emphasized that Uganda’s internal market is too small to sustain long-term growth, noting that even countries with vast populations, such as China, continue to seek external markets. He argued that regional economic integration is essential for creating wealth, generating jobs, and strengthening Africa’s bargaining power globally.
“When people start producing wealth, the internal market is not enough,” he said. “We need a strong regional market. But our politicians don’t talk about this neither do the journalists nor the professors. Instead, they spend their time discussing accidents, gossip, and European football. Meanwhile, Africa is in danger because its intellectuals are blind to their own destiny.”
The President warned that while global powers are advancing technologically and strategically even reaching the moon, Africa remains absent from such critical domains.
“The Americans are on the moon. The Chinese, Russians, and Indians are there too,” he remarked. “And we are here in Mbale. They talk of superiority on land, at sea, in the air, and in space yet Africa is completely missing from that equation.”
Museveni further criticized the artificial colonial borders that have left some African countries, including Uganda, landlocked and strategically constrained.
“Who locked me out of the sea?” he asked. Why should my brother in Kenya or Tanzania accept that I remain landlocked? If your brother is locked, you must act, that is the spirit of African unity.”
Reiterating his long-standing advocacy for East African integration, Museveni said that a political federation would provide the foundation for Africa’s self-reliance and global relevance.
“If we had a strong East African Federation, we would create the centre of gravity for the black race,” he said. “Europe has small countries, but they rely on the United States as their big brother. In Africa, all our countries are democratically and that is dangerous.”
The President envisioned a future where Africa is not merely watching the world from below but participating at the highest levels of human achievement.
“When we form a political federation and become strong, we too shall go to the moon and ask the Americans, ‘What are you doing here?’” he said . “Not to dominate others, but to ensure our own security. Because right now, who is taking care of our security on the moon? We are not there — we are here.”
Museveni urged intellectuals, journalists, and political leaders to lead meaningful discussions on regional unity, economic integration, and strategic security, warning that failure to do so would leave Africa perpetually dependent and vulnerable.
