Yoweri Museveni whose full name is Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, is a Ugandan Politician, military officer and revolutionary who has been serving as the ninth president of Uganda since 1986.
He was know to be an autocratic Leader. In 1980 Museveni lost his election, so he started the Ugandan Bush War which led to the removal of Milton Obote.
Early Life
Museveni was born into the Family’s of Late Mzee Amos Kaguta and Esteri Kokundeka Nganzi, in Rukungiri. His Father was a cattle keeper. Museveni is from the Hima ethnic Group in the kingdom of Mpororo which is now part of Ankole tribe.
Museveni’s father, was a soldier in the King’s African Rifles’ 7th battalion during the World War II. Yoweri was born, relatives used to say, “His father was a mu-seven” (meaning “in the seventh”). This is how he obtained the name Museveni.
His family migrated to Ntungamo, then within the British Protectorate of Uganda.
Yoweri Museveni Age
He was born on the 15th September 1944
Education
Museveni attended Kyamate Elementary School, Mbarara High School, and Ntare School for his primary and secondary education.
He later attended the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania for his tertiary education, where he studied economics and political science. The university at the time was a hot bed of radical pan-African and Marxist political thought. While at university, he formed the University Students’ African Revolutionary Front student activist group and led a student delegation to FRELIMO-held territory in Portuguese Mozambique where they received military training. Studying under the leftist Walter Rodney, among others, Museveni wrote a university thesis on the applicability of Frantz Fanon’s ideas on revolutionary violence to post-colonial Africa.
Also Read: Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi Biography
Yoweri Museveni Career
- 1970 – Museveni Returns to Uganda after college and works for Prime Minister Milton Obote.
- January 25, 1971 – He Goes into exile in Tanzania when Obote is overthrown by Idi Amin. While in Tanzania, forms the Front for National Salvation (FRONASA) with the purpose of overthrowing Amin.
- April 1979 – FRONASA overthrows Amin and Museveni takes a position on the Military Commission, the newly formed government of Uganda.
- 1979-1980 – Museveni Became the Minister of Defense, Uganda.
- 1981-1986 – Museveni Became the Guerilla leader (National Resistance Army) in Uganda.
- January 26, 1986 – Becomes president of Uganda after ousting the military regime of General Tito Okello. Is sworn in January 29.
- May 1996 – Museveni was elected president of Uganda with 74.2% of the vote in the first direct presidential election in Uganda since independence from Britain in 1962.
- March 24, 1998 – US President Bill Clinton meets with Museveni in Uganda.
- March 2001 – Museveni was re-elected president of Uganda with 69.3% of the vote.
- May 6, 2002 – Meets with US President George W. Bush at the White House to discuss ways to get more Ugandan products into the US market.
- July 11, 2003 – President George W. Bush meets with Museveni in Entebbe, Uganda, to speak about AIDS.
- August 2005 – Uganda’s parliament removes presidential term limits.
- February 25, 2006 – Museveni was declared the winner of Uganda’s first multi-party presidential election. It is his third term in office.
- August 2006 – The Ugandan government and the Lord’s Resistance Army sign a truce aimed at ending 20 years of civil war in the country. The war has killed tens of thousands and displaced two million people.
- October 30, 2007 – Museveni meets with President Bush at the White House.
- November 2010 – Museveni released a song with a music video, “U Want Another Rap?” as part of his re-election campaign.
- November 29, 2010 – Museveni takes a surprise trip to Somalia, making him the first head of state to visit in almost 20 years, according to the African Union Mission for Somalia.
- February 20, 2011 – Uganda’s electoral commission declares Museveni the president with 68% of the vote. It is his fourth term in office.
- February 24, 2014 – Museveni signs into law a controversial bill that toughens penalties against gay people and makes some homosexual acts crimes punishable by life in prison. During the bill signing, he declares that he will not allow the West to impose its values on Uganda.
- July 31, 2015 – Museveni says he will seek his fifth term as president in 2016 elections, 30 years after assuming the office for the first time.
- February 20, 2016 – Uganda’s election commission declares Museveni the winner, with nearly twice as many votes for president as his closest competitor, opposition leader Kizza Besigye. Besigye was put under “preventative arrest” on February 19 at his home in Kampala, along with six officials from his party. Besigye’s party, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) rejects the results and demands an independent audit of the elections.
- May 12, 2016 – Museveni is sworn in for his fifth term as president.
- July 11, 2016 – Facebook photos of Museveni sitting in a lawn chair by the roadside making a phone call in Kyeirumba Village, Uganda, go viral, inspiring an online meme.
- July 27, 2018 – A Ugandan constitutional court ruling upholds a December 2017 constitutional amendment to remove the presidential age limit, likely allowing Museveni to rule for life. The article limited anyone from serving as president past the age of 75.
- July 24, 2019 – Bobi Wine, a 37-year-old Ugandan pop star, announces he is running against Museveni, who has been in power for 33 years.
- August 26, 2019 – A Harvard student sues Museveni for blocking him on Twitter arguing that being blocked has prevented him from giving feedback to the official’s account about government policies on Twitter.
- April 9, 2020 – Museveni releases a home workout video in order to encourage Ugandans to stay home during the country’s Covid-19 lockdown.
- May 20, 2020 – The High Court in Kampala rules that Museveni and other officials have a right to block people on their private Twitter handles.
- January 16, 2021 – Uganda’s election commission declares Museveni the winner of the presidential election. It is his sixth term in office.
- May 12, 2021 – Museveni is sworn in for his sixth term as president.
- May 29, 2023 – Signs into law one of the world’s strictest anti-gay bills amid Uganda’s intensifying crackdown on LGBTQ people. Museveni had sent the bill back to parliament for revisions in April.
- June 8, 2023 – Museveni says on Twitter that he is taking “forced leave” after testing positive for Covid-19 and is experiencing “mild symptoms.”
Yoweri Museveni Personal Life
Museveni is an Anglican and a member of the Church of Uganda.
He is married to Janet Kataaha Museveni, née Kainembabazi, they have four children:
- Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba – he was Born in 1974, He’s a General in the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF)
- Natasha Karugire – Born in 1976, a Fashion designer and consultant. She’s Married to Edwin Karugire. Private Secretary to the President of Uganda for Household Affairs.
- Patience Rwabwogo – Born in 1978, a pastor of Covenant Nations Church, Buziga, Kampala. She’s Married to Odrek Rwabwogo.
- Diana Kamuntu – Born in 1980. Married to Geoffrey Kamuntu.
Yoweri Museveni Awards and nominations
Honorary degrees
University |
Country |
Honour |
Year |
Humphrey School of Public Affairs |
United States |
Doctor of Laws |
1994 |
Uganda |
Doctor of Laws |
2003 |
|
Latin University of Theology |
United States |
Doctor of Divinity |
2007 |
Fatih University |
Turkey |
Honorary degree |
2010 |
Makerere University |
Uganda |
Doctor of Laws |
2010 |
University of Dar es Salaam |
Tanzania |
Doctor of Literature |
2015 |
Yoweri Museveni Net-worth
Yoweri Museveni is worth over $5 Million. He’s said to be one of the Richest Politicians from Africa.
Yoweri Museveni Life Summary
Real Name |
Yoweri Museveni |
Date Of Birth |
15th September 1944 |
Occupation |
Politician |
Place of Birth |
Ntungamo |
Nationality |
Uganda |
Spouse |
Janet Kataaha Museveni |
Number of Children |
4 |
Net-Worth |
$5 million |
Yoweri Museveni Social Media Handles
As at the time of writing this article, he currently has over 3.2M followers on Twitter and 1M on Facebook.
- Instagram: @Kagutamuseveni
- Twitter: @KagutaMuseveni
- Facebook: Yoweri Kaguta Museveni
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