President Yoweri Museveni has retained Democratic Party (DP) president Norbert Mao as Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs in the latest cabinet appointments, further underscoring the continued working relationship between Mao and the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM).
Mao, who also serves as Member of Parliament for Laroo-Pece City Division in Gulu City, first joined the Cabinet in 2022 shortly after signing a cooperation agreement and Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the NRM government.
The agreement, signed at State House Entebbe, was witnessed by the Secretary General of the NRM, Richard Todwong, and his DP counterpart, Gerald Siranda. The deal sought to foster political cooperation and power-sharing between the two parties and expired on May 11–12, 2026
However, the arrangement sparked widespread debate within political circles and among DP supporters, many of whom accused Mao of abandoning opposition principles in favor of political convenience. The agreement also triggered divisions within the DP, with some party members openly opposing Mao’s leadership.
A faction led by Bukoto Central MP Richard Ssebamala attempted to challenge Mao’s position as DP president through internal party processes and court action, but the efforts were unsuccessful.
In 2025, Mao retained his position as DP president following a highly contested delegates’ conference held in Masaka.
Since entering the cooperation arrangement with the NRM and subsequently joining Cabinet, Mao has increasingly appeared alongside ruling party officials at major government and NRM events.
Most recently, he attended the two-week retreat for newly elected NRM Members of Parliament in Kyankwanzi at the invitation of President Museveni.
Mao contested for the position of Speaker of Parliament during the recent elections for the leadership of the 12th Parliament but lost to Jacob Oboth-Oboth.
Speaking after the election of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, President Museveni acknowledged the support Mao received during the contest, suggesting that the votes would ordinarily have gone to the NRM because of the cooperation between the two sides.
The cooperation agreement between the NRM and DP expired early this month and many expected that since it is what had brought him closer to govenrment, he would be dropped from cabinet.
Museveni’s decision to retain Mao in Cabinet following the expiry of the cooperation agreement is likely to fuel fresh debate about the relationship between Mao and NRM.
