President Yoweri Museveni and First Lady Maama Janet Museveni on Tuesday rallied thousands at Kizinda Playground in Bushenyi District, calling for the preservation of peace and renewed support for the NRM as the country heads toward the 2026 general elections.
Maama Janet commended Bushenyi residents for their visible progress, noting neat homesteads, productive farms and well-maintained government projects observed as they flew into the area.
“You, like the people of Mbarara City, have shown real progress,” she said. “We must always remember that peace is precious—many of you are young, but this stability came after a long struggle.”
She encouraged eligible voters not only to participate in the elections but to mobilise their families and neighbours. “Do not remain at home. Go and vote so that peace continues.”
President Museveni, the NRM presidential flagbearer, highlighted the party’s achievements over the last four decades, starting with the restoration of national stability. He cautioned against identity-based political divisions, pointing to Sudan as a warning of how ethnic and religious conflict can ruin a previously stable nation.
“Uganda was also headed in that direction, but we reversed it by building a strong army and police,” he said.
Addressing infrastructure, Museveni cited government investments in Bushenyi, including upgrades on the Mbarara–Kasese road. He confirmed that the worn stretch between Mbarara and Bushenyi will soon be repaired, with funding and a contractor already in place. He also announced the forthcoming construction of the Kitabi–Kitagata–Rwamabondo road and asked leaders to support government priorities for faster implementation.
The President questioned ongoing power fluctuations despite the country’s adequate electricity generation and pledged to follow up with the responsible agencies.
He praised Bushenyi’s expanding social services—151 government-aided primary schools, 16 public secondary schools, and numerous private institutions—saying they reflect residents’ growing prosperity. He attributed the district’s rising population of 300,000 to better healthcare services and high immunisation coverage.
Museveni also unveiled plans to enhance local health facilities: upgrading Kajunju and Kashenyi Health Centre IIs to Health Centre IIIs, constructing three new Health Centre IIIs, and elevating one Health Centre IV to a district hospital.
However, he warned that public development does not automatically translate into wealth at household level. He urged locals to embrace income-generating farming, citing examples such as Matonga of Nakaseke and Minister Byamukama, who use the four-acre model to earn from dairy, coffee, poultry and piggery.
He also encouraged large landowners to grow tea, noting that China has not imposed taxes on Ugandan tea exports.
Museveni said only 30% of Ugandans remain outside the cash economy and urged greater involvement in wealth-creation pillars—commercial agriculture, manufacturing, artisanship, services including tourism, and ICT.
On employment, he highlighted industrial parks as major job sources, noting that the Mbale Industrial Park alone provides 12,000 jobs. He revealed that government is securing land for an additional industrial park to widen employment opportunities.
Museveni wrapped up by asking the people of Bushenyi to back the NRM’s development and economic agenda as the 2026 elections approach.
