Nkumba University’s 29th Guild President, Ignatius Kangave Musaazi, grandson to the father of Uganda’s democracy, Sir I.K. Musaazi, has declared his bid for the Central Youth Member of Parliament seat on the National Resistence Movement (NRM) ticket.
With party primaries slated for Monday, August 25, 2025, Kangave is among nine contenders but is already emerging as a strong favorite. Many point to his ancestral heritage, the political trail blazed by his grandfather, and a campaign message rooted in inclusion and diversity as pillars of his growing appeal.
Born in Nakaseke and raised in Timuna Village, Kangave describes himself as a “true son of the soil.” His childhood, he says, was shaped by a hardworking community where every neighbor was family. “I was an active and curious child, always asking why and persuading others to explain the world around me,” he recalls. “Leadership for me was never about power but about service, something I first learned from the village elders.”
The values that guide him today, he summarizes as the “3Rs”: Respect, Responsibility, and Resilience. “Respect defines my character. Responsibility was non-negotiable, with my parents teaching me the importance of hard work and seeing a task through. And resilience came naturally from village life, where we had to smile through struggles,” Kangave explains.
It was at home, around whispered fireside stories, that Kangave first encountered the towering legacy of his grandfather. “My father told me that my grandfather didn’t just live, he stood,” Kangave says with conviction. “That phrase shaped my understanding of purpose. I never felt pressured to live up to his name. Instead, I felt a torch had been passed to me. I chose to walk in his light, not his shadow, and to shine it toward the needs of our generation.”
Kangave’s educational journey began at Wobulenzi Parents Primary School, continued through Ssaku Secondary School, and culminated at Nkumba University, where he graduated last year.
His leadership at Nkumba was defined by courage. Running as an independent candidate for Guild President, he sought to serve all students without partisan leanings. “I faced significant challenges, no institutional support, and high expectations because of my family name. But I overcame them by building a grassroots movement based on personal connection, honesty, and clarity of vision,” he says. He summed up his leadership style in three words: “Inclusive, Purposeful, and Resilient.”
Now aiming for the 2026–2031 parliamentary term, many supporters view him as the “truest definition of I.K. reincarnated.” His campaign, however, looks beyond nostalgia. “The Uganda of today is a new battlefield,” he says. “My fight is for economic liberation and social justice for young people. My grandfather’s values are not just symbolic; they are very practical. They are the fuel behind my mission.”
As the NRM delegates’ conference convenes on Monday, August 25, to decide flag bearers for the forthcoming elections, all eyes will be on the youthful aspirant carrying the torch of a historic legacy.
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