President Museveni interacts with Kenzo
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I Is he the right person to have revealed Eddie Kenzo’s parentage to the country? Put more boldly: Could President Yoweri Museveni earn a few more votes at the 2026 polls for having been the one to reveal the secret that the acclaimed musician and so called son of the ghetto is the offspring of the late Brigadier Chefe Ali, a bush war hero?
“Kenzo is a son of a soldier. He is the son of Chefe Ali. Did you tell them your father, or you are hiding it? They told me he is the son of Chefe Ali. Where are the other children of Chefe Ali? And he even resembles them, they look alike,” said Museveni during the launch of the “Yoweri” album in Munyonyo last Saturday.
Brigadier Chefe Ali, a revered National Resistance Army commander who died in the 1990s, has his roots in Rwanda.
Kenzo has all along branded himself as a street kid orphaned at five, and raised by Mzee Hassan Senyange, a humble security guard. But this is not to forget that Kenzo is married to Phionah Nyamutooro, a lady from Nebbi, a strong Movementist and state minister for Energy. This has brought the former street boy closer to the first citizen, who is currently thirsty for votes.
His closeness to Museveni’s camp would to an extent take the light out of Boby Wine’s presidential bid, since he is a fellow musician, say political pundits. They are of the view that Museveni’s revelation has huge political significance and could have bearing on the forthcoming general elections.
DNA lies?
Kenzo revealed DNA test results confirming his ties to Brigadier Chefe Ali, reshaping his family history. Museveni praised him during a tribute event.
During the Speke Resort Munyonyo event, which featured the unveiling of President Museveni’s new album. Kenzo was applauded for his financial integrity as a Uganda National Music FoundationUNMF ambassador.
On September 28, 2025, Kenzo confirmed to the media that DNA testing on the remains of Hassan—a man he believed to be his father—proved they were not biologically related.
According to Kenzo, his mother was originally from Rwanda but migrated to Masaka, Uganda, where she gave birth to him between 1989 and 1990. After his mother and grandmother passed away, Kenzo was raised in Hassan’s household, which felt like family to him at the time.
Whether Kenzo’s parentage revelation could win Museveni a few more votes from the Gen Z, since he has always claimed that he is a product of the ghetto, and he has lived most of his life on the streets.
It’s no doubt that thousands of these recognizes with Kenzo’s rags to riches narration. It remains to be seen whether the singer’s narrative would lead to a tangible political outcome.
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