It's official-ish. After years of will-he-won't-he tweets, Uganda's most famous general has finally put a date on it.

Well, the worst-kept secret in Ugandan politics is out.

Uganda's military chief, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has announced he will run for president in 2031, in what looks like a straight-up father-to-son handover attempt.

The 52-year-old, who just happens to be President Yoweri Museveni's son, dropped the news in a series of characteristically bullish posts on X.

"I will stand for the highest office in the land in 2031. And we will win by the grace of Almighty God," he wrote.

And for anyone wondering about his chances? He's pretty confident. The general reckons he'll sweep 90% of the vote with the backing of his father, whom he affectionately calls "Mzee" - the honorific Ugandans use for Museveni.

As reported by cbinews.tv, this has been coming for a long time.

Muhoozi has long been touted as a possible successor to his ageing father and heads the Patriotic League of Uganda, the political pressure group that morphed out of the old MK Movement. He was widely expected to contest the 2026 election before pulling out at the last minute to let Mzee have another go.

And what a go it was.

Let's add some context here, because this is not your average democracy.

Yoweri Museveni, now 81, has ruled Uganda since 1986 after leading a five-year guerrilla rebellion. When he seized power, he famously said "the problem of Africa in general and Uganda in particular is not the people but leaders who want to overstay in power". Forty years on, he is Africa's third-longest ruling head of state and has just been sworn in for a seventh term after winning the disputed January 2026 election.

Most Ugandans - the median age is under 16 - have literally never known another president.

That seventh term, extending his rule into a fifth decade, was fought in a familiar atmosphere of repression and intimidation. Opposition leader Bobi Wine, the pop-star-turned-politician, has fled to the United States this year saying he fears for his safety, while veteran opposition figure Dr Kizza Besigye has been in prison since 2024 facing a treason trial.

It is precisely this climate that makes Muhoozi such a controversial figure. He is well known for his fiery social media posts including threats to behead the leading opposition leader Bobi Wine, and while Museveni is widely thought to be lining up his son to succeed him, the president has always publicly denied grooming him.

So, will Mzee actually step aside in 2031?

Nobody knows. Asked by Reuters whether Museveni would run again, government spokesman Alan Kasujja said Museveni and the NRM would decide "when the time comes".

If he does run again in 2031, he would be 86 and eyeing close to half a century in power. If he doesn't, Uganda could be about to witness its first dynastic succession - a Museveni family affair that critics are already calling "Musevenism without Museveni".

Either way, the succession question is now front and centre.

Credit: cbinews.tv

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