Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has requested forgiveness from the youth for his oversight during his 80th birthday celebration, where he forgot to make a wish.
In a statement, Museveni acknowledged this lapse, explaining that he was unaware of the tradition of birthday wishes due to his lack of experience with birthday celebrations.
“Yesterday, Muzzukulu Hellen Seku reminded me that as the birthday celebrant, I had not shared my wish with my well-wishers. Since I’m not accustomed to celebrating birthdays, I didn’t know this was expected,” he said.
He expressed that while he has many wishes, the tradition typically allows for only one. To address this, he declared that his wish is for Ugandans and all Africans to unite in prayer and effort towards realizing the Pan-Africanist dream of an East African Political Federation and the strengthening of the Continental Free Trade Area.
Museveni emphasized the importance of these goals in achieving prosperity for African wealth creators by establishing a larger market for their products, ensuring strategic security against various threats through integrated defense systems, and fostering brotherhood among African peoples to attain these objectives.
He noted that this vision aligns with the aspirations of notable leaders like Mwalimu Nyerere, Kwame Nkrumah, and Jomo Kenyatta, among others.
Lastly, he expressed gratitude to all Ugandans for their good wishes and congratulations on his milestone birthday.
