Regime Hegemony in Museveni’s Uganda

This is a study of the struggle for the restoration of legitimate power in Uganda following the 1986 National Resistance Army/Movement (NRA/M) liberation battle led by President Yoweri Museveni. It addresses the empirical consequences of legitimacy on power relations and how this affects democratization and economic progress.

"Rubongoya has written the most thorough and penetrating analysis of the regime of Yoweri Museveni in Uganda to date. The study ably chornicles the rise and decline of the regime, measured in terms of its public legitimacy, since its advent in 1986... Recommended." - CHOICE

"This is, unequivocally, an important book. It is rich in detail on the twists and turns of Uganda politics under Museveni." - International Journal of African Historical Studies

"This is a refreshing review and excelleent analysis of Yoweri Museveni's regime in Uganda since its inception in 1986. The author traces the pattern of Uganda's political development through Museveni's successes and failures, advances and declines, gains and disappointments, as well as the subsequent consequences for citizens who were denied access to rewards of the system. Basing his research on careful gathering and assesssment of historial events and a variation of systems analysis, Rubongoya guides readers through this era and addresses the wider issue of governance in Africa."

- Marion E. Doro, Lucy Marsh Haskell Professor Emerita of Government, Connecticut College

"Joshua Rubongoya provides us with the full sweep of the Museveni regime to date. His comprehensive yet critical account effectively undermines the admiration recently lavished on the Museveni regime in Uganda by participants, diplomats and scholars. Rubongoya focuses his analysis on the tension between state legitimacy and power consolidation, which enables him to reinterpret Uganda's post-independence period by demonstrating that none of its regimes, including Museveni's, has achieved legitimate government. He argues that Museveni's initial popularity seemed to provide the basis for good governance, but the second decade of his rule showed that his solutions were superficial. Rubongoya explains that Museveni's insistence on continuing in office for a third term together with his increasing reliance on presidentialism, clientelism and the use of state resources for political support have carried him far from the democratic policies he proclaimed when he came to power." - Nelson Kasfir, Professor of Government, Dartmouth College

JOSHUA B. RUBONGOYA is Professor of Political Science in the Department of Public Affairs, Roanoke College, USA.