Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame arrived in Uganda on Sunday April 24 to attend the 48th birthday fete of First son Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
Kagame came at the invitation of President Yoweri Museveni who also hosted him at sumptuous dinner State House Entebbe.
Until the Police blocked roads in Kampala and suggested that Heads of State would attend Muhoozi’s birthday, most people in Uganda appeared to have dismissed the event as nothing more serious and some form of overindulgence.
But the participation of President Kagame and Museveni himself, has forced people to pay attention, as to the significance of the party beyond a mere birthday celebration.
Muhoozi’s birthday party comes at a time of warming ties between Uganda and Rwanda, an achievement also credited on the first son.
But most importantly perhaps, the event is being seen as some form of unveiling of Museveni’s successor.
Although President Museveni has vehemently refused to name a successor, and insisted that he has no business choosing one for Ugandans, the birthday gig increasingly comes across as a succession rite.
