President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has called on National Resistance Movement (NRM) leaders in the Busoga sub-region to embrace humility, unity and discipline, warning that internal divisions are slowing service delivery and delaying socio-economic transformation.
Speaking to thousands of NRM leaders from across Busoga at Iganga Girls’ Secondary School on Saturday, January 10, 2026, President Museveni said leadership without humility fuels conflict and ultimately harms ordinary citizens.
“So please, I ask you to be humble as leaders. If I were not humble, I would not have managed Uganda,” President Museveni said, drawing applause from party cadres.
The President, who is also the NRM national chairman and presidential flag bearer for the 2026 general elections, said unity among leaders is essential for development and poverty reduction.
He warned that political quarrels mostly hurt the poor, who depend on stable and coordinated leadership to improve their livelihoods.
“What I advise you is that poor people need unity among the leaders because you are delaying their coming out of poverty by not working together,” he said.
“The ones who are suffering are the poor people because when the rich are quarrelling, they are in good cars and in their houses. They can afford to quarrel.”
President Museveni said divisions among Busoga leaders stood in contrast to other regions where NRM meetings had shown greater cohesion, including Bukedi, Lango, Bugisu, West Nile and Acholi.
He disclosed that the Busoga meeting was convened in Iganga at the request of the State Minister for Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Hon. Persis Namuganza, but was affected by disagreements among leaders.
“You must cure this problem because it is Namuganza who asked me to bring this meeting here,” President Museveni said.
He expressed disappointment that some senior NRM leaders from Busoga did not attend, citing confusion over invitations.
The President said he personally intervened to clarify the matter after learning that the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for East African Community Affairs, Rt. Hon. Rebecca Kadaga, had not attended.
“I spoke to my young sister Kadaga to ask where she was, and she told me she was not invited,” President Museveni said.
He added that after consulting the Speaker of Parliament, he was informed that all NRM flag bearers had been invited, prompting further clarification.
NRM Chairman for Iganga District Hajji Abubakar Walubi later told the meeting that invitations were communicated through Resident District Commissioners, District Internal Security Officers and party structures down to parish and village levels.
The gathering was part of the NRM’s broader strategy to strengthen grassroots mobilisation ahead of the 2026 general elections.
President Museveni said the meeting aimed to equip leaders with a clear and consistent NRM message, outlined in a party booklet detailing what he described as the movement’s seven historic contributions.
He identified peace as the NRM’s most important achievement.
“Even without doing other things, so long as we have peace, everything can be achieved,” President Museveni said.
He attributed Uganda’s past instability to identity-based politics rooted in tribe and religion.
“We rejected the politics of identity of tribe and religion. That was the main problem that blocked prosperity,” he said.
The President explained that national unity enables economic interdependence, using examples from agriculture and industry to show how regions rely on one another for markets.
He cited Busoga’s sugar industry as a key contributor to national consumption and income generation.
Beyond nationalism, President Museveni emphasised the importance of Pan-Africanism and the East African Community market.
He said Uganda produces about 700,000 tonnes of sugar annually against domestic demand of about 300,000 tonnes, while milk production stands at about 5.3 billion litres, far exceeding local consumption.
“If we didn’t have the East African market, industries for milk, beef, sugar, cement and steel would have collapsed,” he said.
President Museveni listed infrastructure development as the second NRM contribution and wealth creation as the third, revisiting the four-acre farming model introduced in the 1996 NRM manifesto.
He cited Minister of State for Transport and Bugangaizi West MP Fred Byamukama as a beneficiary of the model.
“He sells 310 trays of eggs per day and gets Shs108 million per month, remaining with Shs55 million as profit,” the President said.
He also cited Korea Dick Ogira, a mango farmer in Abim District, who earns Shs36 million per acre despite operating far from tarmac roads.
President Museveni said government has supported wealth creation through Entandikwa, NAADS, Operation Wealth Creation and the Parish Development Model.
Under PDM, each parish receives Shs100 million annually, with more funding expected as beneficiaries succeed.
“I know people who were very poor in villages but have used this money to get out of poverty,” he said.
He described job creation as the fourth NRM contribution, saying employment grows naturally from commercial agriculture, manufacturing and skilled trades.
He cited Johnson Basangwa of Jeka Poultry Farm in Kamuli, whose business employs about 300 people.
First NRM National Vice Chairperson Alhajji Moses Kigongo thanked Busoga leaders for turning up in large numbers and expressed confidence that the region would deliver strong support in the January 15, 2026 general elections.
The meeting was attended by senior NRM leaders, including former Vice President Dr. Specioza Wandira Kazibwe, Third Deputy Prime Minister Rukia Nakadama, and Minister for the Presidency Babirye Milly Babalanda.