Museveni renames self Tibuhaburwa  

Museveni joins hundreds of other Ugandans who are seeking to rearrange their names to align them with the law. 

On October 6, Museveni swore a deed poll that this newspaper has seen, where he explains that he was compelled to put his names in proper order because it has been written interchangeably on several occasions over the years.
A deed poll is a legal document used to prove change of a person’s name.

In the deed poll, Mr Museveni says he was born in September 1944 and named Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Kaguta.  However, his academic certificates bear the name Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Museveni.

“Since the completion of my education, the names Yoweri Museveni, Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Museveni, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Kaguta Museveni have been used interchangeably in reference to me,” Mr Museveni states in the sworn document.

The flag bearer of the ruling National Resistance Movement for 2021 elections, says from October 6 onwards, the proper legal order of his name is Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Kaguta Museveni.

“I formally and absolutely renounce and abandon the use of names Yoweri Museveni, Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Museveni, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and assume and adopt in place of those names my full name Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Kaguta Museveni,” he states in his deed poll.

He continues: “For purposes of evidencing the assumption of the proper order of my full name, I hereby declare that I shall at all times from now in all records, deeds and instruments in writing and on all occasions that require the use of my full name, sign the name of Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Kaguta Museveni instead of the renounced names.”

Commissioning the deed poll
The said deed poll was sworn in through K&K law firm. Mr Kiryowa Kiwanuka, one of the managing partners at the law firm, yesterday confirmed he commissioned the deed poll.

President Museveni now joins a long list of more than 160 politicians such as Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, Gen Henry Tumukunde and Mugisha Muntu of Alliance for National Transformation who have since sworn in their deed polls to rearrange their names in accordance with the Registration of Persons Regulations to avoid being rejected for nominations in the 2021 elections.

Mr Kyagulanyi who has been interchangeably using names of Kyagulanyi Ssentamu R, Kyagulanyi Robert Sentamu, Robert Ssentamu Kyagulanyi and Kyagulanyi Ssentamu Roberts, now wants the correct order of his name to be Kyagulanyi Ssentamu Robert.

Mr Muntu, who has been interchangeably writing his name as Mugisha Greggson and Mugisha Gregory Muntu Oyera, now wants to be known as Mugisha Muntu Gregg to match particulars on his academic certificates.

Former Security minister Gen Tumukunde on the other hand wants to add another name Kakurugu to his name to read Henry Tumukunde Kakurugu. He had previously been interchangeably using the name Tumukunde Henry BK, and Henry Brian Kakurugu.

The panic among politicians in having their names realign with their academic papers follows a recent announcement by the Electoral Commission that aspirants with different names other than those on their academic documents will not be nominated for the elections.

The EC announcement follows a 2017 court ruling in which Taban Amin’s victory as Kibanda North MP was annulled on account that he interchanged his names, which included Taban Amin Tampo Jegejege, Taban Amin Tampo as indicated in the national voters’ register and ID to Taban Idi Amin on the nomination form and academic certificates and Idi Taban Amin indicated in his passport.

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