Kyankwanzi, Uganda: A simmering political contest for the next Speaker of Parliament burst into the open Thursday at the National Leadership Institute in Kyankwanzi, after Speaker Anita Annet Among aimed dig at Democratic Party (DP) President Norbert Mao, saying his cooperation with the NRM doesn’t give him an automatic pass to enter the “bedroom”.
While addressing Members of Parliament and top National Resistance Movement (NRM) leaders at the high-level retreat, Speaker Among delivered a thinly veiled warning aimed at political actors within the NRM–DP cooperation arrangement, declaring that such alliances should not be misconstrued as a pathway to the Speakership.
“We do cooperate with different political parties, but the cooperation does not mean that if we are cooperating, you come up to my bedroom,” Among said. “You remain in the compound. You don’t come up to the bedroom. The bedroom this time around is the Speakership. You cannot cooperate to the tune of Speakership.”
Her remarks, delivered pointedly before President Museveni, were widely interpreted as a direct swipe at DP leader Norbert Mao, whose party entered a controversial cooperation agreement with the ruling NRM in 2022.
Mao Fires Back
Just minutes later, Mao responded with equally sharp rhetoric on his X platform, escalating what insiders describe as an early but serious contest for control of the 12th Parliament.
“This is not just bad politics. It is bad manners!” Mao said. “Only the head of the family has the final word on who can access which room in the home. He doesn’t need lectures from a recently adopted child! Above all, when you insult your father’s visitors, you’ve insulted your father.”
Mao’s response drew murmurs on social media and within the retreat, as the exchange unfolded in full view of the President, highlighting growing tensions within the ruling coalition and its allies.
The NRM–DP Cooperation
The standoff between the two is rooted in the July 2022 cooperation agreement between the NRM and the Democratic Party, which saw Mao appointed Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs.
The deal, framed as a national unity arrangement, aimed to foster political cooperation, support constitutional reforms, and stabilise governance. However, it has remained contentious, with critics arguing it blurred opposition lines and primarily benefited a faction within DP.
Within NRM circles, the agreement has also triggered unease, particularly over how far DP figures can leverage the partnership in seeking top government and parliamentary positions.
Speaker Anita Among, who rose rapidly through the ranks of Parliament, has consolidated significant influence since replacing the late Jacob Oulanyah in 2022.
A lawyer by training and MP for Bukedea District, Among previously served as Deputy Speaker before assuming the top seat. Her tenure has been marked by strong alignment with the Executive and firm control over parliamentary proceedings.
She is widely seen as a frontrunner to retain the Speakership in the next Parliament, backed by powerful blocs within the NRM establishment, and driving on the fact that the Speakership title has always stood for two consecutive terms.
And her remarks on Thursday signalled a clear intent to defend that position and draw red lines around what she views as internal versus external claims to the role.
The public exchange between the two contenders for the Speakership highlights the early crystallisation of alliances and rivalries ahead of the next parliamentary term.
On social media commentary, analysts say Among’s “bedroom” metaphor was not merely rhetorical but a strategic message, aimed at ring-fencing the Speakership as an internal NRM preserve, despite broader political cooperation arrangements.
Mao’s response, however, suggests that DP does not view itself as a peripheral partner but as a stakeholder with legitimate expectations within the alliance.
The confrontation also places President Museveni in a delicate balancing position, as both Among and Mao are key figures within his broader political architecture, one anchoring Parliament, the other symbolising cross-party collaboration.
The Kyankwanzi retreat has historically served as a stage for major political signalling within the NRM, often shaping policy direction and leadership alignments.
That such a direct and personal exchange occurred in this setting, and in the President’s presence, signals that the battle for the Speakership is no longer behind closed doors.
With the 2026 political cycle approaching, Thursday’s clash may mark the opening salvo in what is shaping up to be one of the most closely watched internal contests within Uganda’s political landscape.
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