President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), has called on leaders to prioritise identifying and solving citizens’ practical needs, saying this approach has guided the National Resistance Movement (NRM) since the 1960s.
The President made the remarks while presiding over the election of UPDF representatives to Parliament at the Land Forces Headquarters in Bombo.
During the Defence Council Delegates Conference, UPDF officers elected 10 representatives, seven men and three women to serve in the 12th Parliament.
The elected male representatives are Lt. Gen. Sam Okiding, who garnered 340 votes; Lt. Gen. James Mugira with 303 votes; Lt. Gen. Sam Kavuma with 282 votes; Brig. Gen. Gonyi David with 266 votes; Maj. Gen. Henry Masiko with 251 votes; Maj. Gen. James Kinalwa with 241 votes; and Brig. Gen. Joseph Ssemwanga with 198 votes.
The female representatives elected are Col. Meeme Sylvia, who received 314 votes; Col. Ikiriza Knight with 307 votes; and Col. Nekesa Christine Situma with 261 votes.
In his address, President Museveni thanked the UPDF High Command for nominating the officers and reiterated the importance of leaders who are able to identify and address citizens’ solvable needs. He referred to the Runyankore concept of “okukyenura,” which he described as the deliberate identification and resolution of people’s practical challenges.
Reflecting on the NRM’s early achievements, the President noted that by 1996 the Movement had restored discipline within the army, rejected sectarian politics, eliminated shortages of essential commodities, rebuilt infrastructure, and rolled out immunisation against six killer diseases. He said these interventions earned the NRM widespread public support.
President Museveni further highlighted government initiatives aimed at uplifting the poor, including Entandikwa, Universal Primary Education, army schools, NAADS, Operation Wealth Creation, and the Parish Development Model, which he said is currently yielding positive results at the grassroots.
He added that the renewed enthusiasm around the NRM witnessed during recent elections reflects these efforts and the peace the Movement has maintained.
The President explained that UPDF representatives in Parliament serve as observation posts to identify national issues early and report them to army leadership, thereby helping to prevent policy mistakes. He cited the decision by Members of Parliament to increase their salaries as an example of an issue that could have been addressed earlier through such mechanisms.
President Museveni tasked the newly elected UPDF representatives to closely monitor government programmes, including the Parish Development Model, free education, road construction, and immunisation. He noted that while preventive healthcare has improved, challenges remain in curative services.
On electoral governance, the President reiterated the NRM’s longstanding objective of ensuring Ugandans choose their leaders through one person, one vote by secret ballot. He revealed that irregularities were detected in the 2021 general elections, including the infiltration of an estimated 2.7 million votes, which informed his insistence on the use of biometric verification systems, though he noted these were not fully utilised.
He emphasised that national stability depends on leaders allowing citizens to freely choose those in power and commended the UPDF and other security agencies for maintaining security during the recently concluded elections.
The Chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission, Justice Simon Byabakama, congratulated the UPDF officers for exhibiting discipline throughout the voting process and expressed hope that similar discipline would be demonstrated in other electoral processes nationwide. He also called on all stakeholders to embrace unity as the election period comes to an end.
During the same ceremony, President Museveni commissioned three officer cadets presented by Maj. Gen. James Kinalwa, Joint Staff Human Resource Management. The commissioned officers are Bazalaki Timothy, who trained at General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University in Sri Lanka, and Akoi Moses and Piloya Vivian, both of whom completed their training in Tanzania.
