President Museveni Launches NRM Register Update Amidst Vow To Sweep 2026 Elections

By Gad Masereka

Today, President Yoweri Museveni, also the National Chairman of Uganda’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), has launched the NRM Voter’s Register Update at the Party Secretariat in Kampala.

While addressing party members, Museveni affirmed the party’s commitment to secure victory across all electoral levels including him sweeping all other candidates the will contest with him. In his speech, he stressed the importance of emphasizing the four core NRM principles during the update. He highlighted the significance of understanding these principles to attract more members and ensure effective mobilization efforts.

The President emphasized the values of patriotism, pan-Africanism, social-economic transformation, and democracy. He urged leaders to delve into these principles deeply to mobilize and sensitize the public effectively.

Additionally, Museveni hinted at addressing social-economic transformation extensively in his upcoming speech, emphasizing the importance of nurturing Uganda’s economy further.

Mobilisation of meetings is rending our clothes but we must rend our hearts,” the President added insisting that NRM leaders understand what the country needs by going deep to understand the problems so they can ably mobilise and sensitize the public.

President Museveni addressing the NRM CEC, and Cadres at Kyadondo on Wednesday afternoon

“Each one of them (the principles) has got deeper values attached to the NRM, so explore them and make our members understand wholly” Mr Museveni added.

The President also hinted that in his planned address tomorrow (Thursday) he will address the issues of social-economic transformation in detail in an exploratory move to see Uganda’s economy flourish further.

The President also renewed his party credentials as an NRM Member before the Secretary-General Rt. Hon Richard Todwong, and after that signed the dummy register book to mark the launch of the exercise.

President Museveni (L) updates his credentials as NRM’s first member in the party register book. On the right is SG Richard Todwong.

Speaking at the same event, SG Richard Todwong revealed that the party’s Membership registry currently boasts of 11.4 million registered members with the party aiming to expand the figure further in the upcoming registration exercises.

Todwong said the process of preparing the registry which included data analysis and cleanup is now done, and administrative units harmonized, booklets printed and sorted for display at the village and parish levels for the exercise to get underway.

Unlike the previous manual exercise of updating the registers, Mr Todwong excitedly told leaders that the NRM has this time around opted to go digital with now over 70,000 villages mapped onto the party registry countrywide, which enables the district and parish registrars to easily update the information that automatically reflects to the national level.

The SG also urged the NRM leaders right from village to national level to emulate President Museveni’s visionary leadership and ensure discipline among themselves to make the party lovable for all Bazzukulu in the country.

“Let’s not hold the party at ransom, we should ensure that we emulate the leadership of our Principal and Jajja H.E Yoweri Museveni for the way he loves us all as party members and how he wholeheartedly involves everyone in the party leadership,” The Secretary-General emphasized.

SG Richard Todwong addressing NRM Cardres at the NRM Party Secretariat on Wednesday afternoon

The Roadmap for Village, Sub County and District NRM Elections

While presenting the revised roadmap of the upcoming party electoral activities, the NRM Electoral Commission Chairperson, Dr Tanga Odoi, said the update is the party register will begin on 13th to 17th March 2024, the display of the party will take place in all the 72000 villages in the country.

“On the final date (17th March 2024), all villages around the country will hold the Baraza to ascertain the details entered in the village register, this will help confirm that these are bonafide registered members in the ruling party, ” Dr Tanga submitted before the NRM National Chairman.

The electoral activities according to Dr Tanga will start at the village level. They will take a run up until the end of March when all party chairpersons at the village level will be elected and confirmed.

Between March 19 and 24, Dr Tanga said the party shall call for expression of interest and nominate candidates for the party structures at the village and cell level and between arch 25 and 26, campaigns will be organized in every village.

“On March, 27, the party shall have polling and announcement of results of party structures at village level and on April, 5, the compiling of the register will start at the parish level, and on 12, a compilation of the voters register and polling of party structures will take place at sub-county and town council levels,” stated Dr Tanga.

The exercise will continue at municipal and city division levels on April, 16, district and city levels on April, 19 whereas between April, 20 and 30, will be for compilation of the register and sending final results to the party secretariat.”

Dr Tanga emphasized that despite reports confirming candidates for the 2026 elections, the exact dates for the party primaries and presidential flag bearer elections will be communicated soon after the elections to the district level are concluded.

Earlier in the day, Office of the National Chairman Manager, SPA Hadijah Namyalo arrived in high gear for the launch as part of her mobilization activities.

Why the Register Update Exercise?

The rationale of the party register update according to the Secretariat is to ensure that members details are up-to-date, most especially those who joined NRM before obtaining national IDs with their Identification details

The exercise is also aimed at weaving out non-existent members who perhaps may have deceased or decided to abandon or join another political party.

It should be understood that Ugandan registered voter cannot have more than one political affiliation, which means for one to join the NRM or another party, they have to cease their current membership first, as formal as it should be.

The launch of the NRM Party Register Update on Wednesday attracted several top leaders