Museveni reveals how former president Tito Okello gave Muhoozi his nickname

Museveni says Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s nickname “Muogi” came from former president Gen Tito Okello’s way of pronouncing his name.

President Yoweri Museveni has revealed how Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba got the nickname “Muogi.”

Museveni said the name came from former Ugandan president Gen Tito Okello’s wife, who struggled to pronounce Muhoozi’s name.

In a post on X on April 24, 2026, Museveni explained that Gen Tito Okello, who was their neighbour in Upanga, Dar-es-Salaam, used to pronounce Muhoozi’s name differently because of his Acholi accent.

“I always call Muhoozi, Muogi. It is because our neighbour in Upanga, Dar-es-Salaam, was Mzee Tito Okello (Gen). Being a traditional Acholi, he had a problem with pronouncing the “z” in Muhoozi’s name. Hence, the Muogi and Maama Janet also became Maama Muogi,” Museveni posted.

The President said the nickname stayed and became common even for First Lady Janet Museveni, whom some people also called Maama Muogi.

He added that Tito Okello’s wife was called Maama Jennifer, and they had no difficulty pronouncing her name.

“Tito’s wife was safely Maama Jennifer because we had no problem pronouncing Jennifer, the sister of Okello Oryem. Unfortunately, Jennifer died some years ago,” he said.

Jennifer was the sister of State Minister for Foreign Affairs Henry Okello Oryem.

Gen Kainerugaba, who was born on April 24, 1974, marked his 52nd birthday on Thursday.

The birthday attracted messages from leaders, supporters, and members of the Patriotic League of Uganda, with many praising his military leadership and public service.