Maj (Rtd) John Kazoora, a veteran of the Yoweri Museveni-led National Resistance Army (NRA) bush war that brought the current regime to power, has died.
Kazoora would later fall out with Museveni and criticize his government’s policies.
In his memoir titled Betrayed by My Leader, Kazoora sought to expose how Museveni had veered off the fundamental principles and goals of the NRA revolution, and how he fell out with now Uganda’s ruler of four decades.
He would join the opposition Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) where his fellow bush war colleagues like Dr Kizza Besigye (now remanded for treason) and Maj Gen (Rtd) Gregg Mugisha Muntu were top leaders.
Kazoora also previously served as a member of parliament (MP) for Kashaari.
He also served as a special district administrator for Kampala and served in the Internal Security Organization.
It is said that Major Kazoora had been sick, going in and out of hospital in recent years.
Last year, he met President Yoweri Museveni and reportedly reconciled with him, and the head of state is said to have forgiven him.
It should be remembered that Kazoora vehemently opposed the scrapping of the presidential term limits.
“Constitutions are for the long time benefit to society and not short-term goals of the ruler… The kind of issue we are debating seems to imply that we shall write the name ‘Yoweri Kaguta Museveni’ in the Constitution, and to me this is very unfortunate,” Kazoora said in 2005 as parliament debated the term limit amendments.
“The argument that people will get rid of a leader that they no longer want by vote is to me simply shallow and simplistic… We all know that there is intimidation of voters and, therefore, cannot exercise their free will independently.”
JOHN KAZOORA QUICK PROFILE
Born on August 14, 1958
MP for Kashari County (Mbarara District) from 1996 to 2001.
Left the NRM and was one of the founder members of the Forum for Democratic Change in early 2000s
2006: Appointed Director of Operations of the FDC
Known for his boldness and his book ‘Betrayed by My Leader.’
Died on April 20, 2025.
A number of Museveni’s bush war veterans have since passed on but some remain.
You can read about the painful end of a bush war commander who died a miserable life and went to Besigye to beg for Shs50K to buy medicine, and what Museveni finally said about him when he died, Here and There.
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