Gen Kainerugaba officialy withdraws support for Among as Speaker candidate

• Gen Kainerugaba’s PLU withdraws support for Anita Annet Among as Speaker.

• The league also retracts its backing of Thomas Tayebwa as Deputy Speaker.

• PLU tells its MPs to support the president’s chosen candidates.

• The reversal adds tension to the upcoming speakership vote.

Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, chairman of the Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU), has withdrawn his group’s support for Anita Annet Among in the race for Speaker of Parliament.

In a statement on May 12, 2026, the PLU said it had rescinded its March 11 endorsement of Among and Thomas Tayebwa as its candidates for Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the 12th Parliament.

The league urged its members-elect to back the candidates that President Yoweri Museveni will present. The statement added that PLU members must follow the guidance of their chairman.

The March 11 letter had instructed all PLU-leaning MPs to back Among and Tayebwa. But the new guidance says that endorsement is “retracted and withdrawn with immediate effect.”

The reversal deepens uncertainty around the speakership race as MPs prepare to vote later this month. PLU holds influence due to its alignment with the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) and its large bloc of MPs.

Observers had expected PLU to push for Among given past support. But the latest move shows a shift, with the league now deferring to the president on whom to support.

PLU General Secretary David Kabanda signed the press release and said the league will follow Kainerugaba’s command at all times.