Muhoozi Kainerugaba, a general and the eldest son of Uganda's incumbent President Yoweri Museveni, had previously announced he would give up service in the army and run for presidency, but continued serving. Recently, he has made new statements on his retirement and participation in the presidential election set for 2026.
The Uganda People's Defense Force's (UPDF) General Muhoozi Kainerugaba has announced his retirement from the national army.
The announcement was made on his official social media page.
"I will be retiring from the UPDF this year," Kainerugaba, who has been serving in the UPDF since 1999 and reached the rank of general, said.
The social media post comes a few days after he deleted another one saying that he would run for presidency in 2026, as cited by media.
"You have wanted me to say it forever! Okay, in the name of Jesus Christ my God, in the name of all the young people of Uganda and the world and in the name of our great revolution, I will stand for the Presidency in 2026," the deleted post reportedly read.
However, the Ugandan law envisages that serving soldiers can not take part in the country's politics.
The son of Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni, one of Africa's longest-serving leaders, has rejected claims that he plans to succeed his father, reports said Thursday. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, speaking on May 25 after he was promoted from Brigadier to Major General, heading the Special Forces Command (SFC), said he was happy with being in the military, the government-owned New Vision newspaper reported.
In March last year, the general announced his retirement on his official social media webpage for the first time, but the UPDF did not confirm his intention to retire, saying it had not received any request.
"After 28 years of service in my glorious military, the greatest military in the world, I am happy to announce my retirement. Me and my soldiers have achieved so much! I have only love and respect for all those great men and women that achieve greatness for Uganda everyday," he said.
Later that year, Kainerugaba made another social media post where he confirmed he would run for the presidency in the future.
"The only way I can thank my beautiful mother is to become president of Uganda. And I certainly will," he stated.
His father Yoweri Museveni has been the head of state since 1986. During the last presidential election held in January 2021, he was re-elected, overtaking a candidate from National Unity Platform Robert Kyagulanyi.
