President Museveni, who also serves as the National Chairman of the NRM, has cautioned party members against discriminating between long-serving cadres and newcomers, insisting that the ruling party must embrace all members equally.
In a statement issued on Saturday, Museveni said that favouring one category of members over the other was dangerous for the party’s future.
“The NRM should treat all members equally. When the puppies are young, you feed all of them equally because you do not know which of them will be a better hunting dog,” Museveni said.
His remarks appear to be a direct response to First Deputy Prime Minister Rebecca Kadaga, who recently raised concerns over what she described as preferential treatment of new entrants at the expense of veteran cadres.
Kadaga made the comments during her campaigns for the NRM Second National Vice Chairperson (Female) slot, where she faced stiff competition from Speaker Anita Among.
Kadaga, a founding member of the NRM, questioned the loyalty of newcomers like Among, pointing to her own decades of service to the party.
“I have been a member of this party since its inception… All my life, my commitment has been to the NRM. Yet the person now aspiring to this office has served for only three years,” Kadaga said during a tense Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting chaired by Museveni last week.
She also reminded the committee of her past sacrifices, including enduring political humiliation while remaining loyal to the party.
But Museveni, in his weekend statement, stressed that both old and new members are vital to the NRM’s strength and continuity.
“It is very dangerous for the original members of a political organization to discriminate or resent new members. Strategically, it would be insulting and repulsive to have two types of members: the old and the new. How can you treat people who come to reinforce you as if they are squatters?” Museveni asked.
The president added that senior cadres should not fear being outshined if they continue focusing on solving people’s problems.
“In the kingdom of heaven, there is no young and there is no old. In political parties, all members should be equal,” he emphasized.
Museveni’s intervention is widely seen as an attempt to cool tensions that flared during the recent CEC meeting at State House, where Kadaga’s concerns sparked heated exchanges within the top leadership.
