President Museveni has warned that the increasing use of money in politics poses a serious threat to Uganda’s stability, accountability, and future governance.
Speaking during the National Resistance Movement (NRM) National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting at State House, Entebbe, on Saturday, August 23, 2025, the President said political leaders must win support through persuasion and service, not financial inducements.
“Money is poison. When leaders are elected through bribery or cheating, they become unaccountable to the people. That is what caused wars in the past, and we cannot allow it to happen again,” Museveni cautioned.
He warned that both the ruling party and the government would take firm action against perpetrators of electoral malpractice, stressing that leadership must be grounded in credibility rather than coercion.
The warning came as NEC members raised concerns over fresh reports of bribery during the internal elections, with allegations that delegates of the Entrepreneurs League had been flown out of the country by one of the candidates. Museveni said such incidents mirrored the mistakes that led to Uganda’s turbulent past.
“This is exactly what I have been talking about. This is a dangerous precedent that we cannot allow to continue. It is incidents like these that caused trouble in the UPC,” he said, recalling how the refusal to address voter malpractice by the then-government had contributed to the 1980s bush war.
Despite his stern remarks on money and corruption, the NEC proceeded to adopt wide-ranging resolutions on the party’s leadership and direction ahead of the 2026 elections.
The council unanimously endorsed President Museveni as the NRM’s Presidential Flag Bearer and National Chairman, extending his leadership for another five years.
Al-Hajj Moses Kigongo was reaffirmed as First National Vice Chairman, while Rt Hon. Rebecca Kadaga and Rt Hon. Annette Among were forwarded to the National Delegates Conference for consideration as Second National Vice Chairperson (Female).
NEC also recommended regional leaders including Hon. Dan Fred Kidega, Hon. Obua Denis Amson, and Hon. Sam Engola, among others, for positions to be voted on at the upcoming National Delegates Conference.
Reading the resolutions, party Secretary General Richard Todwong said the decisions reflected the NRM’s “commitment to unity, continuity, and transformation.”
Museveni, meanwhile, commended the steady growth of the NRM—now boasting over 18 million members—and the rise of young leaders within its ranks.
“I am very happy to see many young people now taking up leadership roles in the NRM. Like a warthog protected by its young ones, I can see the NRM being defended by these young leaders,” he remarked.
The President also tied his warning on political bribery to the broader goal of national stability, highlighting that Uganda’s four decades of peace have rested on principles of patriotism, Pan-Africanism, democracy, and socio-economic transformation.
On the economy, he reiterated that Uganda had grown 17 times since 1986, moving through phases of recovery, expansion, diversification, and value addition, and now entering the knowledge economy. He called for a “qualitative leap” to ensure more households join the money economy as part of full national modernisation.
Museveni assured delegates that he would deliver a comprehensive address at the forthcoming National Delegates Conference, focusing on safeguarding the Movement’s gains and steering the country into its next stage of development.
