Museveni marks 81st birthday as leaders send tributes

15 September 2025, 6:39 pm

By Ronald Ssemagonja

President Yoweri Museveni today marked his 81st birthday, with leaders across Uganda, including the Uganda Taxi Operators Federation (UTOF), sending him messages of goodwill and praise for his decades of leadership.

Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Anita Among, commended the president for his role in safeguarding Uganda since taking over power in 1986. “Today, we celebrate your life dedicated to serving the nation, transforming society, and rescuing Uganda from the brink of failure. We wish you many more years of leading the protection of the tremendous gains achieved under your leadership. May the Lord Almighty grant you many more years of good health,” she said.

The team leader of Seven Hills, Salim Menton, expressed gratitude for the president’s support, noting how Museveni’s interventions had transformed their lives. “I’m so grateful to God that today we celebrate the life of our Commander in Chief and grandfather of the nation, as he marks 81 years. Since the president decided to help us, our lives have changed. We were very bad people because of the things we used to do, but the president picked us from where we were, and we who were Sauls were made Pauls. I urge all young people to come to Seven Hills in Makindye to register for jobs,” he said.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the Federation of Uganda Taxi Operators (UTOF), Sekindi Rashid, appealed to the president to scrap penalties and fines imposed on taxi drivers. “As we celebrate the president’s birthday today, I appeal to the president to help us and remove all the penalties that were put on our drivers. The president has the capacity to do that because recently, when traders were challenging the new taxation system, he intervened and directed that it be put on hold. We’re sure our beloved president can do the same for the taxi drivers,” Sekindi said.

He added that if the president responds positively, drivers and conductors would overwhelmingly support him in the upcoming general elections. Sekindi also revealed that some individuals had attempted to take over one of the city taxi parks, but President Museveni intervened to protect it. He urged the president to officially open the renovated park, which was upgraded during the COVID-19 period.

It should be remembered that yesterday, during a gathering at Kololo ceremonial grounds, the president promised to find a lasting solution to challenges affecting taxi drivers and conductors. On Thursday, he is expected to address the nation regarding the operators’ requests. Taxi operators say the fines currently range between Shs 2 million and Shs 15 million.