The 81-year-old was sworn in yesterday to extend his presidency over a further five-year term that may well be his last — although not necessarily the last for the Museveni family.
The President’s son and presumptive heir, Army Chief, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, oversaw dayslong rehearsals of the military parade that will animate the eighth inauguration of Museveni, with Russian-made Sukhoi fighter jets flying noisily over official ceremonial grounds in Kampala, the Ugandan capital.
Museveni took the oath of office and received the ceremonial instruments of power while being cheered by thousands attending the event in the Kampala suburb of Kololo.
Many Ugandans now accept that Museveni’s presidency — the only one that millions of people have known — is nearing its end. What remains uncertain is the nature of the transition and how orderly things would be in the time he has left in office.
Kainerugaba looks poised to take over. He has declared his wish to succeed his father and said recently that the mission is unstoppable.
Still, his path is narrow and could follow one of two ways: either a bloodless but unconstitutional takeover by Kainerugaba or a constitutional amendment that allows lawmakers with the ruling party — who have an overwhelming majority — to pick him as Museveni’s successor.
An electoral win is seen as a hurdle too high for Kainerugaba, whose challengers would include opposition leader Bobi Wine, the popular entertainer who has twice run for President and rejected the outcome of the January election that gave Museveni his next term.
Anita Among, the parliamentary Speaker, said last month that legislators would do everything possible to assist Kainerugaba in his pursuit of the presidency.
In addition to the Speaker, many other leaders have been scampering to show allegiance to Kainerugaba. While their moves display a quest for political survival, they also underscore Kainerugaba’s rise as Uganda’s de facto leader as his father ages and relies more on the army chief to exercise authority.
Kainerugaba, 52, joined the army in the late 1990s, and his rise to the top of the armed forces has been controversial, with critics dubbing it the “Muhoozi Project” to prepare him for the presidency.
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