Amama Mbabazi

John Patrick Amama Mbabazi, SC (simply known as Amama Mbabazi, born 16 January 1949) is a Ugandan politician who served as the ninth Prime Minister of Uganda from 24 May 2011 to 19 September 2014. He played an instrumental role in Uganda's protracted liberation struggle from several tyrannical governments (1972-1986) and is a founding member of the National Resistance Movement, the ruling political party in Uganda.

Mbabazi served as the member of parliament for the Kinkiizi West constituency in Kanungu District, a position held from 1996 until 2016, when he ran unsuccessfully for the Presidency.

Early life and education Amama Mbabazi was born in Mparo Village, Rukiga County, in present-day Rukiga District, on 16 January 1949. and Ntare School for his A-Level. Mbabazi earned a Bachelor of Laws from Makerere University.

Career Before entering politics, he worked as a state attorney in the Attorney General's Chambers from 1976 to 1978, rising to the position of secretary of the Uganda Law Council from 1977 to 1979. He was appointed Minister of Defence in 2006, a position he held until he was appointed Minister of Security. He served as Minister of Security from February 2009 until May 2011, when he was appointed prime minister.

He was Secretary General of the NRM from November 2005 to January 2015.

Presidential bid In late August 2014, Mbabazi addressed the Ugandan North American Association (UNAA) convention in San Diego, California. Less than three weeks later, on 19 September 2014, President Yoweri Museveni replaced Mbabazi as prime minister with Ruhakana Rugunda. Deutsche Welle and other media reported that the reshuffle was widely seen in the context of internal ruling-party tensions and speculation about Mbabazi’s political ambitions.

On 15 June 2015, Mbabazi declared his intentions to run against Yoweri Museveni for the National Resistance Movement's nomination for president at the party's convention on 4 October 2015. This declaration was followed by a response from President Museveni who dubbed it "bad conduct and premature". On 31 July, after much disagreement between top-ranking party officials and Mbabazi himself, the former prime minister declared he would stand as an independent candidate. His candidature was backed by The Democratic Alliance (TDA), a loose convergence of minor political parties working to win the position of presidency.

In the 2016 general election he received 1.39% of the vote, placing third.

Diplomacy Mbabazi has represented Uganda in international fora, including the United Nations Security Council, where he argued for the international community to allow the Uganda People's Defense Force to pursue the Lord's Resistance Army fighters into the Democratic Republic of the Congo.