Basajjabalaba Endorsed Unopposed as NRM Entrepreneurs League Chair

President Museveni has secured a deal ending weeks of turmoil within the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), with billionaire businessman Al Hajj Hassan Basajjabalaba endorsed as the unopposed Chairperson of the party’s Entrepreneurs League for the period 2025–2031.

According to a communiqué signed on Saturday at State Lodge Nakasero, all rival candidates, including King Cesar Mulenga, Sanjay Tanna, and Phillip Kakuru, agreed to step down and back Basajjabalaba following Museveni’s intervention. The dialogue was facilitated by Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa.

The resolution follows days of chaos in the party’s Entrepreneurs League elections, which Museveni had suspended after candidates petitioned against alleged fraud.

Complaints included forged accreditation cards, vote buying, and delegates being hidden or ferried to neighboring countries to block access. Petitioners warned the practices risked “playing with fire and destroying the party.”

Basajjabalaba, one of Uganda’s wealthiest businessmen with vast interests in education, real estate and manufacturing, has long been a controversial figure in politics.

His endorsement to continue leading the Entrepreneurs League a bloc that mobilizes the business community behind the NRM underscores his enduring influence within Museveni’s inner circle.

The outcome highlights Museveni’s trademark style of brokering last-minute consensus to maintain unity in the ruling party, even as accusations of corruption continue to dog its internal democracy.