Kadaga vs Among: Loyalty Battles Generational Change as Museveni Lets NRM Decide

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The ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) convened its 4th National Conference on August 23, 2025 where delegates endorsed President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni as party chairperson and flagbearer ahead of the 2026 elections. Al-Hajji Moses Kigongo also retained his seat as the First National Vice Chairperson.

But it was not these endorsements that stole the spotlight. Instead, tension flared during the endorsement of candidates for the Central Executive Committee (CEC) positions specifically the hotly contested slot of Second National Vice Chairperson (Female) where two political heavyweights Rt. Hon. Rebecca Kadaga and Speaker of Parliament Annet Anita Among clashed openly before the NEC.

The Party chairperson Museveni acknowledged Kadaga and Among as longstanding contributors to the NRM, urging them to reach a compromise.
“My usual way is win-win. I don’t like win-lose,” he said, suggesting that whichever candidate stepped down could still be nominated among his additional appointees.

But neither of the two was willing to back down.

Kadaga, the former Speaker of Parliament and current Deputy Prime Minister spoke first; declared herself the rightful incumbent reminding delegates of her decades-long service to the party since 1989.

“I have never belonged to any other party. All my life, I have been NRM,” she said. She faulted her rival for only joining the party three years ago warning that such politics of expedience undermine NRM’s principles.

Visibly emotional, Kadaga accused the party of humiliating her in the past when she was ousted as Speaker and now once again attempting to sideline her.
“How much more can you press an individual? Loyalty, integrity, commitment; these no longer seem to matter in our party,” she lamented warning that a contested vote could cause serious problems within her community.

In a firm rebuttal, Speaker Anita Among dismissed Kadaga’s claims and presented herself as the face of generational leadership.

“Being new is not a crime,” she said. “I have brought over ten MPs from the opposition into NRM. I am a disciplined cadre and I mobilize for the party.”

Among argued that the Vice Chair (Female) seat was about energizing the party not ringfencing it for veterans. She stressed her loyalty to Museveni:
“As Speaker, I love my President and my party. I can never bring a motion of displeasure against him. Never.”

The exchanges left the NEC hall tense with delegates keenly watching how Museveni would handle the stand-off. The President eventually deferred the matter leaving the final decision to the upcoming National Delegates Conference at Kololo on August 27–28.

With Kadaga warning against sidelining veterans and Among promising new Ideas, the contest appears more than a simple vote but rather a test of NRM’s ability to balance loyalty, generational change and party unity.

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