Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni apologized Wednesday in a statement for his son’s Twitter rants, which included threats to invade Kenya.
The unfriendly comments earlier this week by General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the 48-year-old eldest son of the head of state, have offended the Kenyan neighbor. The president’s son suggested that it would take him and his army two weeks to take over the Kenyan capital Nairobi.
He had also reprimanded, still on the social network, the former head of state Uhuru Kenyatta for not having run for re-election in the last presidential elections in August, despite the Constitution which prohibits more than two terms. In a statement issued Wednesday, the Ugandan president criticized his son for “interfering in the affairs” of Kenya, and for publicly expressing himself on political issues, which is normally forbidden to any military official.
“I ask our Kenyan brothers and sisters to forgive us,” wrote Yoweri Museveni, who has presided over Uganda with an iron fist since 1986. The 78-year-old head of state has left the door open for a new presidential bid in 2026.
The Ugandan president apologized to his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto, who was sworn in last month. The outcry on social media prompted the Ugandan foreign ministry to issue a statement saying it was “committed to good neighborliness (and) peaceful co-existence” with Kenya.
The Ugandan Ministry of Defense announced Tuesday that Muhoozi Kainerugaba was replaced by another military officer as head of the country’s ground forces, but with the rank of general. The Ugandan head of state, however, was careful to praise the “positive contributions the general has made and can still make.”
Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s earlier Twitter comments in support of rebels in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, which has been in conflict with the federal authorities for two years, also angered the authorities in Addis Ababa.