Uganda’s President Fires Military Son after Offensive Tweets

The Ugandan president’s son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has been dropped from his position as the commander of the country’s land forces, according to media reports.

Kainerugaba lost his post after he tweeted an unprovoked threat to capture Kenya’s Capital Nairobi, drawing widespread concern in East Africa.

A Ugandan army spokesman told the BBC on Tuesday that Kampala has a good relationship with Nairobi, and so the Ugandan army cannot invade the neighbouring country.

Kainerugaba, dubbed ‘the tweeting general’ of Uganda, in recent months had sparked anger among Ugandans who see his frequent posts on Twitter as provocative and sometimes even dangerous, reports AP.

He has tweeted in support of the Tigray rebels fighting Ethiopian federal troops, and voiced support for violent rebels fighting in eastern Congo. He said all Africans support Russia in its war in Ukraine.

Bizarrely, Kainerugaba also said he was offering 100 long-horned cattle — apparently as bride price — for Italy’s incoming female prime minister.

On Monday, he tweeted “it wouldn’t take us, my army and me, 2 weeks to capture Nairobi.”

Some of Kainerugaba’s supporters say his tweets are attempts at humor and shouldn’t be taken seriously. But many others see a bigger problem.

As an army officer, he is constitutionally barred from engaging in partisan politics and some Ugandans point out that any other soldier tweeting like Kainerugaba would be court-martialed, according to AP’s report.

– News Agencies, AP, BBC.

Featured Image Caption: Then Lt. Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, right, son of Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni, speaks to Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka, left, at a “thanksgiving” ceremony in Entebbe, Uganda on May 7, 2022. (Photo AP/File)