President Museveni's younger brother, Godfrey Aine Sodo Kaguta, poses for a photo on June 4, 2025 after he picked nomination forms from the NRM secretariat, expressing interest in representing the people of Mawogola North Constituency in the upcoming elections. He said his decision followed negotiations with the president and relevant authorities, who gave him the green light to contest. PHOTO/ABUBAKER LUBOWA
When he turned up at the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party headquarters in early June to signal intent in challenging fellow party member Shartsi Musherure Kutesa in Mawogola North Constituency, President Museveni’s youngest brother, Godfrey Aine Kaguta, alias Sodo, felt the need to explain himself.
He said standing in the NRM primaries had been green-lit by the President and other authorities, who he didn’t mention. “Last time when I tried to stand, something happened and I didn’t finish. I dropped out of the race in the last minute. But this time I want to assure my supporters that I’m with them until the end,” Sodo explained.
The context is that in 2020, Sodo had positioned himself as the successor of Sam Kahamba Kutesa, the long-term Mawogola North legislator, who had served for decades as Museveni’s Foreign Affairs minister, but was retiring from elective politics.
Kutesa’s relationship with Museveni is historical as they started their rivalry in the 1980 General Election.
Although for decades he has notoriously had a grip on the politics of the central district of Sembabule, in 1980, when he set out to participate in elective politics, Kutesa, aged just 31 then, stood in the western constituency of Mbarara North, presently known as Nyabushozi.
Following a period of anarchy, the 1980 elections were the first elections to be organised in post-independence Uganda. Kutesa, who stood as Democratic Party (DP) candidate, took on his main challenger, Museveni, the Uganda Patriotic Movement (UPM) candidate, who had fallen out with the Uganda National Liberation Front (UNLF) government.
The elections, according to critics, were riddled with sectarianism and religious undertones, and the Mbarara North race wasn't any different.
Gerrymandering
One of the biggest accusations levelled against Mr Museveni by his opponents is gerrymandering constituencies and districts in the bid to give his NRM party an advantage in Parliament.
In 1980, he was on the receiving end of gerrymandering. Or so he claimed. Once he lost, Museveni, an Anglican, pointed out how he had won in sub-counties of Nyabushozi that are predominantly Anglican. But he had lost to Kutesa in sub-counties that had been carved from Ibanda into Mbarara North and were populated by Catholics.
Sam Kutesa (L) and Yoweri Museveni at a function in the 1990s. In early January 1981, Museveni filed a petition in the High Court in Kampala challenging the election of Kutesa as MP for Mbarara North Constituency, claiming election malpractice, before he went to the bush. File photo.
Kutesa, an Anglican, was flying the flag of a party—DP—couched in Catholicism. It is not clear how Mr Museveni was serious about the case, but he hired Hunter & Greig, now known as Kateera & Kagumire Advocates, and filed a petition in the High Court in Kampala.
His lawyers listed 10 grounds of annulling Kutesa's victory. Museveni alleged a plethora of electoral indiscretions, including claims that registered voters did not appear on the voters' registers, and that the registers were not displayed for inspection as required by law, inter alia.
But in the first impression of his autobiography, Sowing the Mustard Seed, Museveni intimated that in the grand scheme of things, his group wasn't serious about the elections and the case itself.
While Kutesa was taking up his position in Parliament, Museveni went to the bush where, together with his ragtag guerrillas, he emerged victorious. He would mend faces with Kutesa, who had been appointed Attorney General by the junta regime of Tito Okello Lutwa.
Shifting constituencies
Kutesa didn’t return to Nyabushozi, where the chances of defeating Elly Karuhanga were simply minimal. He instead stood against NRM’s Secretary-General Jaberi Bidandi Ssali in Nakawa. The results, however, weren’t any different as Ssali easily prevailed.
The National Resistance Council (NRC), which Kutesa wasn’t part of, passed a resolution to the effect that there would be a Constituent Assembly (CA) that would debate and pass the envisaged constitution. By and large, members who would constitute the CA were to be elected via the universal adult suffrage, and Kutesa once again shifted constituencies.
He dumped Nakawa and found refuge in Mawogola, Sembabule District.
It is hypothesised that David Tinyefuza, a Luweero Bush War hero, was the only person who could have beaten Kutesa in Mawogola. The maverick General, however, decided to go to the CA via the slots given to the army.
From that time, Kutesa came to define the politics of not just Mawogola but also Sembabule.
As this happened, Kutesa’s relationship with Museveni was strengthened, more so in 1999 when Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the President’s son, married Charlotte Nankunda, the Sembabule kingmaker’s daughter.
It is this marriage that complicated Sodo’s political ambitions in Mawogola North. This was because, as Kutesa set his eyes on retiring from politics, his daughter Musherure sought to replace him, putting the family ties at risk.
Tough choices
For instance, Muhoozi, now the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), who is positioning to replace his ageing father, was forced to choose whether to support his paternal uncle, Sodo, or his sister-in-law, Musherure.
In the run-up to the 2021 elections, Sodo trounced Musherure in the NRM primaries. But, sensing danger, Museveni moved not to declare his brother as their flag bearer.
Outgoing Mawogola MP Shartsi K Musherure. PHOTO/FILE/COURTESY
Sodo and Musherure were told to run as independents. With the bus symbol not available, Sodo opted for the bicycle as his symbol as Musherure settled for a ball.
But both candidates continued to sport the NRM colour—yellow—and symbols on their T-shirts and posters.
Sodo didn’t mind running as an independent until Museveni called for a family meeting at State House Entebbe to resolve the impasse.
Besides Museveni and the warring parties, Sodo and Musherure, the meeting was attended by the President’s brothers—Salim Saleh, Michael Nuwagira alias Toyota and Sedrack Nowomugisha Nzeire.
Others who attended were Gen Muhoozi, Kutesa, Nankunda (Muhoozi’s wife) and Isaac Kutesa (Kutesa’s son).
It’s Sodo who revealed the results of the meeting, saying there were fears that a confrontation between the First Family members would increase violence in Sembabule.
“There were allegations from Kutesa that our supporters were attacking each other. Mzee [Museveni] decided that I should pull out because if we were fighting, there was nothing we were going to do for the people of Mawogola North Constituency,” he said.
“Mzee then decided to call 30 people from Mawogola, and, after consultations, he told me that I should step down. I should come back in 2026. The President is the chairman of the party [NRM] and the head of the family. He is like my father. I don’t want to disagree with him. If the head of the family decides, then what else can I do?” Sodo said.
Sodo’s vision
Although the NRM has dominated Sembabule politics since the district was carved out of Masaka in 1998, Sodo believes he will be the solution to issues such as poverty that people in the area are struggling with.
“The reason I’m standing is the poor service delivery we have in our constituency and the entire Sembabule. Even when I pulled out last time, I remained on the ground trying to help the youth, trying to help people because I’m trying to see that at least every home is earning something and eating something,” he said.
For the 2026 elections, Sodo promised he would be in it until the very end.
“My voters have to be comfortable that I’m with them until the end.”
In pulling out, Museherure, just like Sodo did in 2020, cited Museveni’s intervention and her family.
She, nonetheless, insisted that the interests of the people of Sembabule were still close to her heart.
“To my supporters, I owe you a debt of gratitude for your love, sacrifice and dedication. Together, we have made tremendous progress in improving the living conditions of our people, repairing and building roads, as well as enhancing education and health infrastructure. But above all, we have ensured unity and tranquility in our area,” Musherure, who had been appropriated a Ganda name, Namatovu, by her supporters, said.
This means Sodo will now have an open gate to Parliament come next year. It also means while the Kutesas are winding down like an evening sunset, the Kagutas are still strengthening their hold on Uganda’s politics.
NO LOVE LOST...
Even as he was quitting the race in 2020, Sodo didn’t commit to supporting Musherure. “For the President, I support Museveni. The rest, I leave to people to choose the best choices.”
While these contestations were going on, Gen Muhoozi had already hit the campaign trail canvassing votes for his sister-in-law, Musherure.
“I’m an army officer, not a politician. Ms Musherure is my in-law. She is a twin sister to my wife, and what I know about her is that she is religious, trustworthy and not a thief,” Gen Muhoozi told the people of Mawogola.
President Museveni, first son Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba and his wife Charlotte Muhoozi. PHOTO/COMBO
With Sodo out of the way, Musherure easily won the elections with 17,274 votes. Salim Kisekka, an independent, came second with 2,544 votes, and National Unity Platform’s Henry Mawejje Nyanzi placed third with 2,346.
From 2019, when Kutesa introduced her to the crowd as his successor, Musherure has been christened as a leader; not a politician.
“What the people of Mawogola North need now, more than ever, are leaders, not politicians. Great leaders set aside their differences and focus on collectively working with others towards a common good for the benefit of the people. This is the kind of leadership I would like to offer to the people of Mawogola North,” Musherure said.
