Museveni to Pick NRM Nomination Forms Saturday

President Yoweri Museveni is set to pick up nomination forms for the positions of National Resistance Movement (NRM) party chairperson and presidential flag bearer this Saturday, June 28th, 2025, from the party’s Electoral Commission headquarters in Kampala. This move signals his intention to lead the ruling party and contest for the presidency in the upcoming general elections.

According to Dr. Tanga Odoi, Chairperson of the NRM Electoral Commission, President Museveni, who has been at the helm of the NRM since its inception, will collect expression of interest forms for both roles. This aligns with the 2019 Kyobe Resolution, where the NRM’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) and parliamentary caucus unanimously endorsed him as the sole candidate for the 2021 elections and beyond, citing his extensive leadership, experience, and vision for Uganda.

The collection of these forms marks a significant step in the party’s internal electoral process. Dr. Odoi further elaborated that all aspirants for positions on the Central Executive Committee, the NRM’s apex decision-making body, will undergo formal nomination on July 4th, 2025. However, the window for expressing interest in CEC positions opens earlier, on June 26th, 2025.

Despite the party’s apparent consensus, particularly within the CEC which has ring-fenced the chairperson position for Museveni, dissenting voices within the NRM have emerged. Some members, previously labeled “rebel MPs,” have challenged Museveni’s sole candidature in the Constitutional Court, though without success.

Last week, the NRM Electoral Commission offices witnessed a brief moment of drama when Julius Tumuhimbise, a 36-year-old from Busenyi, attempted to pick up nomination forms for the presidential position on the NRM ticket. He was, however, turned away by officials who clarified that the process for presidential expression of interest had not yet opened. Tumuhimbise asserted his right as a party member to vie for the top seat.

In other NRM nomination news, retired Major General Frederick Ociti Tolit, former chairperson of the General Court Martial, has been nominated to contest the Chua East Constituency seat in Kitgum District. Speaking to Uganda Radio Network (URN), Tolit, who retired from the army in 2024, expressed his motivation to address the significant challenges facing his home area.

He highlighted the lingering effects of past conflict, including widespread poverty, limited access to education, insecurity from Karamojong raids, and attacks by wild animals from Kidepo National Park. Tolit also emphasized the breakdown of essential services, notably the lack of access to clean water due to unrepaired boreholes, forcing communities to share water sources with animals. He pledged to restore dilapidated government services and warned of potential instability if these issues are not urgently addressed.

Additionally, Charles Nsereko has been nominated for Nakaseke South Constituency, and Noeline Basemera Kisembo seeks to retain her seat as the incumbent Woman MP for Kibale District. Nominations for parliamentary, district, and city mayoral flag bearers for the NRM are still underway and are expected to close on June 30th, 2025. The internal party elections are scheduled for July 16th, 2025.