President Museveni has said the critics who say NRM has done nothing for the country deserve hell.
“Those saying that the NRM has done nothing deserve hell,” the President said, before expanding on what he described as hypocrisy among critics.
“So, anybody who stands and says that NRM has done nothing will go to hell—Geyena in Luganda. Because Jesus doesn’t like hypocrites. Especially, Jesus had a lot of problems with the Pharisees, who were pretending to be religious but were hypocrites. He said you’re like graves—white outside but rotten inside.”
Museveni was on Wednesday addressing thousands of NRM supporters at the Makerere University Business School grounds in Nakawa Division .
He explained that NRM has fundamentally transformed Uganda from an import-dependent economy into one increasingly driven by domestic production, manufacturing, and wealth creation.
President Museveni said industrialisation, expanding manufacturing, and promoting wealth creation remain the cornerstone achievements of the NRM government and the basis upon which the party deserves another mandate.
The President, who was accompanied by the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Janet Kataaha Museveni, used the campaign rally to challenge critics who argue that the NRM has failed to transform the country.
“Somebody told me yesterday that if you went to the supermarket today, you would find that 65 percent of the products are made here. In the past, 95 percent of the products in the supermarkets were imported,” Museveni said, drawing cheers from the crowd.
He said the shift towards domestic production is evidence of deep structural economic change and accused critics of being dishonest.
President Museveni placed particular emphasis on manufacturing and artisanship as critical drivers of wealth and employment, citing the rapid expansion of industrial parks across the country.
He pointed to the Sino-Uganda Mbale Industrial Park, which he said hosts about 75 factories employing approximately 12,000 workers, and Namanve Industrial Park, Uganda’s largest, which currently accommodates 273 factories employing more than 24,000 people.
“That area was a forest, and that’s where they used to throw dead bodies during the Idi Amin regime. But now it’s all full of factories,” he said.
He insisted that the existence of such factories contradicts claims that the NRM has failed to deliver.
“So, with those factories and all that wealth, and you say NRM has done nothing, I feel very sorry for you because I can see hell is waiting for you,” he added, in remarks delivered with humour that drew laughter from supporters.
President Museveni said wealth creation remains central to national stability, arguing that infrastructure alone cannot sustain a country whose citizens remain poor.
“The NRM clarified long ago that you can have roads and schools, but if you are not rich, you will retard and eventually collapse,” he said, noting that the movement developed a clear ideological framework centred on wealth creation and job generation before taking power in 1986.
He said wealth and employment are generated mainly in four sectors: commercial agriculture, manufacturing and artisanship, services, and information and communications technology.
He explained that commercial agriculture—covering crops, livestock, and fisheries—creates wealth for households while also generating jobs for others. Manufacturing and artisanship transform raw materials into value-added products and absorb large numbers of workers.
Services such as hotels, transport, including boda bodas, and other service-based enterprises generate income and employment. ICT, he said, allows Ugandans, particularly urban youth, to work remotely for companies abroad while earning incomes locally.
“You can be here in Nakawa and work for companies in America, and they pay you here, yet the company is somewhere else,” he said.
To illustrate the potential of commercial agriculture, President Museveni outlined a four-acre farming model, with coffee on one acre, fruits on another, livestock on the third, and food crops for home consumption on the fourth. He said farmers could supplement this with piggery, poultry farming, or fish farming on the periphery of wetlands.
“Even if you are here in the centre of town, in the periphery you can do some of these things,” he said.
He cited Johnson Basangwa, proprietor of Jeka Poultry Farm in Kamuli District, as an example of how wealth creation leads to job creation.
According to the President, Basangwa produces about 2,500 trays of eggs daily, earning approximately Shs20 million per day, Shs600 million per month, and about Shs7.2 billion annually.
“Basangwa was a poor man in 2007. The only property he had was a plot in Kamuli town of 50 by 100 feet,” he said.
President Museveni recalled advising Basangwa during local political contests that not everyone could become an LC5 chairperson and encouraged him to invest in productive enterprise instead.
“He took that advice and invested in poultry farming. Now he is a very rich man, but he has also created 300 jobs,” he said.
The President also cited his Baralegi farm in the Lira–Lango sub-region as an example of integrated farming, saying a single fish pond measuring 20 metres by 100 metres earns about Shs100 million annually, with roughly Shs70 million remaining after costs.
He traced the evolution of government financing programmes aimed at grassroots wealth creation, including Entandikwa, NAADS, Operation Wealth Creation, the Women’s Fund, the Youth Fund, urban informal settlement programmes, and support for boda boda riders. He acknowledged that some initiatives were undermined by corruption.
“I started to hear people saying beegabira bokka—officials giving money among themselves,” he said.
Despite this, he said national production continued to grow, citing increases in coffee, livestock, maize, and other agricultural outputs. Persistent corruption reports, he said, led to the introduction of the Parish Development Model, which channels funds directly to communities.
“We said if leaders are kwegabira bokka, let us send the money to the people directly,” he said, explaining that all adults above 18 years are expected to join parish-level SACCOs and oversee the use of funds.
He urged voters to take responsibility for electing leaders who safeguard public resources.
“The money for PDM and Emyooga has been coming, but it has been stolen on the way,” he said, adding that urban voters, including those in Nakawa and Kampala, also share responsibility.
“You have the power to elect your representatives. If you elect opposition people who don’t follow your issues, then the money is stolen,” he said.
President Museveni also addressed concerns about health service delivery in Kampala, saying facilities such as Kiruddu, Kawempe, and Naguru were intended to function as district hospitals to reduce pressure on Mulago Hospital.
He said the original plan was for each of Kampala’s five divisions to have a district hospital so that Mulago remains a referral and super-specialised facility, and urged Nakawa voters to elect NRM representatives to follow up on such issues.
Earlier, Anita Among announced plans to establish district hospitals across Kampala’s five divisions, including Kiswa, Kisenyi, Komamboga, Kisugu, and Kawala.
On compensation for former residents of the Nakawa–Naguru housing estate, President Museveni said he would engage the Speaker of Parliament to resolve the matter conclusively.
Addressing the rally, Janet Kataaha Museveni thanked residents of Nakawa for turning up in large numbers and urged them to translate that support into votes during the general elections scheduled for January 15, 2026.
“Attending the rally is not enough. We must remember that our vote is important,” she said, urging young people to protect peace.
“Your vote is your personal brick that you put on the building of Uganda,” she said, calling on voters to support President Museveni and NRM candidates.
Moses Kigongo emphasised the need for unity and discipline during the campaign period, urging supporters to avoid insults.
“We need to win and win highly without any complaint,” he said, adding that peace and stability achieved under the NRM justify continued support for the party.
