Museveni launches NRM parish-level mobilisation drive

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MAYUGE - President Yoweri Museveni, who is also the national chairperson of the National Resistance Movement (NRM), on November 18, 2025, evening officially launched a countrywide parish-level mobilisation initiative aimed at taking the party’s manifesto and message directly to the grassroots ahead of the 2026 General Election.

Speaking at Kityerera State Lodge in Mayuge district to hundreds of newly elected NRM district and lower-level chairpersons, the President stressed that effective political work must be driven by ideology, not merely age or biology.

“You are all young people, and I am happy, but youthfulness alone is biology. Politics needs ideology, otherwise you will not manage,” President Museveni told the enthusiastic gathering.



Penetration strategy 

The President outlined a detailed strategy that targets both residential villages and workplaces, urging NRM chairpersons to establish resident mobilisers in factories, hotels, markets, taxi parks and schools.

He singled out the role of patriots clubs in secondary schools, mentioning a young mobiliser, Hellen Seku of the Commissioner of the National Patriotism Corps Uganda, who has compiled a comprehensive list of these clubs to facilitate outreach to students.

“In a school like Masaka SS with 4,000 students, some of them are adults, but even the young ones who don’t vote must grow up appreciating the work of the NRM,” he said.

Influencers such as taxi drivers were also identified as critical agents for spreading the party’s message through everyday conversations in their taxis.

New mobilisation engine

Central to the new initiative are parish-level conferences that will bring together approximately 63 leaders from each parish, including LC1 executives, village councillors for youth and women, elected parish councillors, and respected opinion leaders such as religious figures.

The President explained that if each of these 63 leaders convinces at least three people in their villages, the ripple effect across Uganda’s more than 72,000 villages would reach about 14 million citizens most efficiently and cost-effectively.

“This is the most efficient way of mobilising,” he emphasised, adding that elected leaders must now take direct responsibility instead of leaving the work to voluntary groups alone.

President Museveni directed mobilisers to confidently highlight NRM’s achievements since 1986—the dramatic increase in factories, tarmac roads, electricity access, schools and health facilities.

He attributed delays in road reconstruction to poor prioritisation by some leaders who push for new districts and other politically popular but less urgent initiatives instead of focusing on universal infrastructure needs, citing the reconstruction of the Fort-Portal-Mityana road.

“Roads benefit everybody. A new district mainly benefits the elite who want titles,” he said.

The initiative

NRM secretary general Richard Todwong reported that the President’s countrywide campaign tours have already covered the regions of West Nile, Acholi, Lango (almost complete), Karamoja, Teso, Bugisu, Bukedi and Busoga, with western Uganda scheduled next.

Todwong praised the high turnout and enthusiasm at campaign rallies but cautioned district leaders against internal fights and the sponsoring of independent candidates against official flag-bearers, urging reconciliation meetings to preserve party unity.

Eastern region NRM vice-chairperson David Calvin Echodu thanked the President for the successful nationwide campaign and pledged full co-operation between the party secretariat and elected structures to deliver victory in 2026.

Grassroots leaders welcome the empowerment

District chairpersons who spoke at the event expressed excitement at finally being given direct responsibility for mobilisation.

Lilian Anyati, the Kole district NRM chairperson, requested bicycles for village and Parish chairpersons, motorcycles for sub-county chairpersons, vehicles for district chairpersons, and modest monthly facilitation to enable them to work effectively.

She also reminded the President of a promised shillings 20 million per district for membership registration.

Christopher Omara (Kwania) said the initiative has energised Lango, giving leaders fresh morale to deliver massive votes.

Wilfred Odia Baguma (Amuru) declared that northern Uganda now overwhelmingly supports the NRM, citing the return of people from IDP camps to their ancestral homes as proof of the party’s transformative impact.

Launch and next steps

Before officially launching the initiative, President Museveni acknowledged the valid concerns about facilitation and transport for party leaders, promising that the matter will be discussed in the party’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) to find a sustainable solution.

“With these few words, I launch the chairpersons to go and supervise the parish conferences organised by the NRM Secretariat,” the President declared amid prolonged applause.

The parish-level conferences are expected to commence immediately across the country, marking a new phase in the NRM’s 2026 campaign strategy that places elected grassroots structures at the centre of political mobilisation.