The clearest signal came from Daudi Kabanda, Secretary General of the Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU), who publicly announced that General Muhoozi Kainerugaba had endorsed the Defence Minister for the speakership.
What was officially presented as a thanksgiving ceremony at Defence Minister Jacob Oboth-Oboth’s rural home in Mukono over the weekend increasingly looked like something far more consequential: an early political declaration in the battle for control of Uganda’s 12th Parliament.
Behind the prayers, speeches and celebration in Kyungu Cell, Mukono Municipality, was a carefully watched display of political alignment that exposed growing cracks within the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) over the future leadership of Parliament.
By the end of the event, one message had become unmistakably clear — a section of the ruling establishment is quietly rallying behind Oboth-Oboth as a possible replacement for the outgoing Speaker Annet Anita Among.
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The clearest signal came from Daudi Kabanda, Secretary General of the Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU), who publicly announced that General Muhoozi Kainerugaba had endorsed the Defence Minister for the speakership.
“Honourable Minister, I have been directed by my chairman to inform you, your family, and the Members of Parliament here that you are going to be the next Speaker of the 12th Parliament,” Kabanda declared, triggering applause from sections of the crowd.
The statement transformed what had started as a ceremonial gathering into an unmistakable political moment.
Oboth-Oboth, who has long been viewed as a disciplined party insider with deep parliamentary experience, did little to reject the growing speculation. Rising from his seat and bowing toward Kabanda, he later responded cautiously but suggestively: “According to what I’m hearing from every speaker, who am I to reject?”
For many observers, the significance of the gathering was not merely in the endorsement itself, but in who was present.
Nearly half of the NRM parliamentary caucus reportedly attended the event, alongside influential party figures and members of the NRM Central Executive Committee (CEC). Their presence surprised many within political circles because party leadership had previously been understood to favour retaining Among and Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa for a second term.
Among the senior figures present were PLU founder Michael Mawanda, NRM Deputy Secretary General Rose Namayanja, CEC members Kyeyune Haruna Kasolo, Lokii John Baptist and Echodu David Calvin. Also present was outgoing State Minister for Disaster Preparedness Lillian Aber, who is increasingly being mentioned as a possible candidate for Deputy Speaker.
The optics were difficult to ignore.
While supporters cheered Kabanda’s declaration, some legislators remained seated — prompting Kabanda to openly challenge them: “Those who are not standing, are you for it or against it?”
The moment captured the uneasy tensions beginning to surface inside the ruling party as succession calculations for the 12th Parliament intensify.
The event also unfolded against a backdrop of growing uncertainty surrounding Speaker Among herself. Reports have recently emerged that security agencies had cordoned off her residence as investigations into alleged illicit wealth accumulation, corruption and money laundering gathered pace. Neither Among nor Tayebwa attended the Mukono gathering despite expectations that they would.
Their absence only deepened speculation that political loyalties inside the NRM may be shifting faster than publicly acknowledged.
For years, Oboth-Oboth has quietly built a reputation as one of the NRM’s most experienced parliamentary operators. The West Budama South MP previously chaired several influential parliamentary committees, including Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Rules and Privileges, and an ad hoc investigation into the electricity sector.
He had also expressed interest in the speakership during the 11th Parliament but stepped aside after the party rallied behind the late Jacob Oulanyah. President Yoweri Museveni later elevated him from State Minister for Defence to full Minister of Defence and Veteran Affairs — a move many interpreted as a sign of growing trust within the system.
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Now, with the opening of the 12th Parliament approaching, that long political apprenticeship appears to be positioning him for a renewed shot at the Speaker’s chair.
Still, analysts caution that the race is far from settled.
The decisive moment may come during the upcoming NRM Parliamentary Caucus meeting expected on May 24, where the ruling party is expected to settle on its preferred candidates ahead of the official opening of Parliament the following day.
Until then, the Mukono gathering is likely to be remembered not simply as a thanksgiving ceremony, but as the moment a quiet rebellion inside the NRM stepped into public view.