By Kellen Owente
As President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni prepares to take oath for his seventh term today, a familiar question continues to surface in public debate: after nearly 40 years of NRM leadership, what more remains to be done?
After more than 100 days on the campaign trail with Mzee, I came away with a clearer, more grounded understanding of that question. What I witnessed was not a campaign of reinvention, but a steady return to what I would call “unfinished business.”
While presenting the 2026–2031 NRM Manifesto, “Protecting the Gains and Securing a Qualitative Leap into High Middle-Income Status,” across the country in 146 districts — starting with Luweero and ending with the final mega rally at Kololo Independence Grounds on January 13 — the President repeatedly returned to one central idea: Uganda’s greatest achievement is not only infrastructure or economic growth, but peace.
And he does not speak about peace as an abstract political statement. He speaks about it as a lived reality.
I still remember a moment in Bunyangabu, at Kibiito Secondary School playground. Standing before a charged crowd, the President said something that stayed with me throughout the entire trail. He said that a child born 40 years ago under the NRM has grown up in peace, gone to school, started a family, and is now raising children — without ever experiencing war, but only hearing about it from neighbouring countries and beyond.
He said it calmly, almost simply. But the weight of that statement filled the space differently. Some in the crowd nodded slowly. Others murmured in agreement. Because whether one is politically aligned or not, that reality is difficult to dispute.
That is the foundation he insists everything else rests on: peace first, then development.
But what struck me most during the trail was how consistently he moved the conversation from national progress to household reality.
Again and again, Mzee returned to one issue: wealth creation.
Yes, Uganda has changed. Roads have been constructed across the country. Electricity now reaches much of the national grid. Towns have grown. Markets are active. Industries are emerging, with thousands of factories coming up. There is visible transformation wherever one travels.
But the President would always bring people back to a more personal question: what is happening inside the home?
He would say it in a way only he can, sometimes pointing into the crowd and asking: “Do you sleep on the tarmac road, or do you go back home and poverty welcomes you?” The crowd would laugh, then settle. Because beneath the humour was a truth everyone understood.
That is the shift I observed in his message throughout the trail — away from national infrastructure alone and toward household income.
Because, to him, you do not eat roads, nor does electricity feed a family. Peace alone does not pay school fees. A household must produce something — a good or a service. A young person must have a skill. A farmer must engage in productive work. Every home must enter the money economy.
And this is where his emphasis on wealth creation programmes becomes central — especially the Parish Development Model, meant to bring development directly to households.
But he did not speak about it casually.
He spoke about it with urgency and ownership. He repeatedly warned wananchi not to allow selfish individuals or corrupt local actors to hijack these funds. Instead, he urged communities to take responsibility — to form trusted committees, monitor implementation closely, and protect every shilling as something meant to change their lives.
His message was simple but firm: development is for all of us; however, wealth is for an individual.
Alongside PDM, he consistently returned to the four-acre model — not as theory, but as practical instruction. Coffee on one acre, fruits on another, pasture for dairy on another, and food crops on the remaining acre. His argument was clear: even small land can produce meaningful income if used properly.
To him, Uganda’s foundation is already laid. Peace exists. Infrastructure exists. Markets exist. Systems exist.
The remaining task is conversion — turning national progress into household prosperity.
The same seriousness carried into his remarks on health.
The issue of drugs in government hospitals came up repeatedly. And each time, his tone reflected frustration rooted in concern for ordinary Ugandans. A patient walking into a government facility and finding no medicine, despite government supplying drugs regularly, was described not just as a system failure, but as a betrayal of public trust. His position was unambiguous: corruption in health facilities undermines everything the country has built, and it will be addressed decisively.
Education was no different.
When Universal Primary Education was introduced in 1997, and later Universal Secondary Education, the intention was clear: “Bonna basome.” Every Ugandan child, regardless of background, should access education.
And indeed, millions have benefited.
But on the trail, the President also acknowledged concerns about implementation gaps — particularly extra charges in government schools that continue to burden vulnerable families. His message was that these distortions must be corrected so that the original purpose of UPE and USE is protected and restored.
Some of the most moving moments of the entire campaign came from the Presidential Zonal Industrial Hubs, now established in 19 zones with thousands of beneficiaries.
At almost every rally, the President would randomly call forward young people trained through the hubs. Many had dropped out of school early — some as early as Primary Three. Others came from backgrounds where opportunities had nearly disappeared.
Yet there they stood — mechanics, welders, bakers, electricians, salon owners — speaking not in theory, but in lived transformation.
Those testimonies carried more weight than any slogan could.
They reflected exactly what his message on wealth creation means in practice.
Security also remained central throughout the trail. While acknowledging that Uganda is peaceful, the President consistently emphasised that peace must be felt at household level. Farmers losing livestock, homes being broken into, and communities affected by theft were issues he addressed through calls for stronger policing, better deployment, and enhanced use of canine units to improve response and deterrence.
Perhaps one of the biggest expectations of the new kisanja is oil and gas development. Mzee repeatedly described Uganda’s oil sector as a future game changer for the economy. With projects such as the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, government expects the sector to generate thousands of jobs, boost industrialisation, and increase national revenue. But even in that discussion, he always returned to the same point: the real measure of progress is how it improves the life of the ordinary Ugandan.
As I reflect on the entire campaign trail, one thing stands out clearly.
This was not a message of starting over. It was a message of completing what was started.
Peace has been secured. Infrastructure has been built. Systems exist.
Now the task is to ensure that what has been built finally reaches the household — through wealth creation, improved service delivery, discipline in public systems, and protection of government programmes from corruption and leakage.
And perhaps that is why his message still resonates with many Ugandans today.
Because at its core, it is not just about what government has done.
It is about what every Ugandan must now feel in their own home — the full meaning of peace turning into prosperity.
As the rallies would wind down, Mzee would always leave the crowd with the same voice, the same rhythm that carried across the grounds: “Uganda Oyee, East Africa Oyee, Africa Oyee.”
And in that chant, there is something deeper than politics. It speaks to the Pan-African spirit he carries — a belief in a united, strong and self-reliant Africa, and a conviction that Uganda’s destiny is tied to the strength of the region and the continent.
At the helm of the East African Community as Chairperson, he has consistently advocated for regional economic integration, cooperation and independence — pushing the vision of an Africa that stands on its own feet.
That, to me, is not just leadership. It is conviction.
Congratulations, Mzee Wakazi.
