From the corridors of Idi Amin’s cabinet to the jungles of West Nile as a rebel commander, and finally to the second-highest office in Uganda’s Government, the life of Gen. Moses Ali traced the arc of the nation’s own turbulent history. On Saturday, that remarkable journey came to an end when the veteran soldier-politician died at Nakasero Hospital in Kampala, aged 87, following a long illness, according to his family.
His death closes an outstanding career in the army and government spanning more than five decades, during which he founded the now-defunct Uganda National Rescue Front (UNRF I), a rebel group that operated in the jungles of West Nile in the 1980s, before transforming into one of the country’s most enduring political figures.
Born on April 5, 1939, in Adjumani district — then part of Madi district in northern Uganda — Ali defied the odds of his era by attaining basic education before joining the military at a young age, an achievement considered uncommon among many of his contemporaries.
His public life began with one of Uganda’s most defining political moments: the 1971 military coup that brought Idi Amin to power and overthrew the government of Milton Obote. Ali was part of the military establishment that ushered Amin into power and later rose through the ranks to become finance minister in Amin’s government.
In their book, War in Uganda: The Legacy of Idi Amin, journalists Tony Avirgan and Martha Honey described Ali as one of Amin’s close associates. The authors wrote that Ali used his position as finance minister to support Islamic charity initiatives, which increased his popularity but also raised suspicion within Amin’s government over fears that he was building a political base among Muslims. His growing influence within the army, they noted, contributed to tensions with Amin.
In 1978, Amin reportedly accused Ali of maladministration within the Muslim Supreme Council, corruption allegations involving Bank of Uganda funds, and insubordination. According to historical accounts, Amin confronted Ali during a tense meeting, after which Ali escaped to West Nile. While returning to the region, he survived an attack by gunmen, an incident reportedly linked to rivalries within the military. Later that year, Amin removed him from his ministerial position and stripped him of his military honours.
As Amin’s government weakened, Ali fled into exile in South Sudan, settling in Nimule near the Uganda border. From there, he led the UNRF, an armed group that fought the second Obote government through the 1980s.
After Yoweri Museveni captured power in 1986 following a protracted guerrilla war, Ali negotiated a settlement with the new administration — an agreement that opened a new chapter in his long political journey. His UNRF forces were integrated into the National Resistance Army, which later became the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), and Ali was appointed a Major General.
His relationship with Museveni’s government deepened over the years, enabling his transformation from former rebel commander into one of the country’s most influential military and political figures. He served in various ministerial roles, including tourism and wildlife, and later state minister for youth, culture and sports, before entering Parliament in 2001 after winning the East Moyo seat. He had earlier served as a delegate to the Constituent Assembly that debated and enacted the 1995 Constitution.
In March 2003, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General, further cementing his influence within the UPDF. He later rose to become Second and then First Deputy Prime Minister, while also serving as deputy leader of government business in Parliament.
Yet his path within the Museveni administration was not without turbulence. On April 7, 1990, Ali was arrested on allegations of treason and terrorism and detained at Lubiri Military Barracks, pending trial before the Kampala Chief Magistrate’s Court. The case commenced in October 1990 before Magistrate Edward Bamwite.
On October 10, State Attorney Semuka Mukomba told court that Ali had been arrested at the entrance of State House Entebbe, where he had reportedly gone to meet President Museveni. Mukomba alleged that Ali was keeping supplies for rebels operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (then Zaire) and Adjumani, with a file recovered from him forming part of the State’s evidence. Then Criminal Investigations Department director Samuel Echaku also alleged that Ali was keeping military hardware intended for rebels to wage war against the National Resistance Movement government. After prolonged proceedings, during which the Government denied claims that the case was politically motivated because of Ali’s previous association with the Amin regime, the charges were dismissed in 1992.
His electoral career, too, had its dramatic reversals. In 2006, Ali suffered a major setback when he lost both his ministerial position and the East Moyo parliamentary seat to his longtime rival Eruaga Piro Santos, popularly known as “Mulago”, in a fiercely contested election that left deep divisions in Adjumani district. Some critics attributed the outcome to what they described as Ali’s political strategy of “divide and rule”, arguing that he had benefitted from divisions within the constituency; his supporters saw his long career as a demonstration of resilience and influence.
After the loss, Ali briefly retreated from active politics, serving as a presidential advisor on refugee affairs, before making a dramatic return in the 2011 General Election when, at 72, he reclaimed the East Moyo seat. President Museveni assigned him new cabinet responsibilities, and a year later he was promoted to the rank of full General in the UPDF. Following his election to represent Adjumani West Constituency, Museveni again appointed him First Deputy Prime Minister and deputy leader of government business in Parliament. Many in Adjumani viewed the appointment as the final chapter of his long career due to his advancing age, but Ali remained active in government, retaining his position after the 2021 general elections.
Indeed, when New Vision asked him ahead of the 2021 polls whether age and calls for retirement had become a concern, his response captured his trademark defiance. “No one is born old and nobody is going to be young forever,” he said, adding: “Election is a race in which people have their choice to make. If the people want me, they will vote for me; if they want a young person, they will vote for a young person.”
Affectionately known as the “Cock of West Nile”, Ali adopted the moniker during the inaugural West Nile Investment Symposium held in Arua in August 2019, where he declared himself the political “cock” of the region. “In every home, there is a cock, and the cock is in charge of that home. West Nile also has a cock, and that is the one speaking now,” he told the gathering. Some critics viewed the remark as a show of arrogance, but Ali maintained that the title reflected selfless service to the people of West Nile — and many say the nickname could not have been more accurate, considering the legacy he leaves behind.
As a senior government figure, serving in positions including Second and First Deputy Prime Minister and minister of tourism, internal affairs, and relief and disaster preparedness, Ali used his political influence to push for development projects in a region that had historically lagged behind other parts of the country. Among the major projects associated with his lobbying was the Laropi Bridge, a key transport link connecting Adjumani and Moyo districts across the River Nile that replaced unreliable ferry services.
Godfrey Manga, a former assistant Adjumani district health officer, credited Ali with supporting the creation of Adjumani district, carved out of Moyo in 1997, and the elevation of Adjumani town council into a municipality — a move that increased access to government funding, improved urban planning and expanded social services. Using his diplomatic and Cabinet networks, Ali also helped attract international partnerships, including municipal co-operation programmes with Italian partners aimed at improving access to clean water and sanitation in the region. “Two qualities stood out about Ali: His generosity and honesty. The list of his good deeds for the Ma’di sub-region is long and cannot be compiled in a day,” Manga said.
John Anyanzo of Ciforo sub-county said Ali’s greatest political legacy was the creation of Adjumani district, later followed by the creation of Obongi district from Moyo in 2019. He also praised Ali’s role in mediating a bitter boundary dispute between leaders of Moyo and Obongi districts over the Palorinya area, helping to ease tensions between the two sides. “He was personally involved in efforts to lobby for the connection of West Nile to the national grid and the tarmacking of the Atiak-Laropi road,” Anyanzo said.
Beyond politics and the military, Ali invested in youth and education initiatives. When Adjumani Town Council Football Club qualified for the top league for the first time in 2022, Ali was credited with having supported the club’s establishment in 1997 as part of efforts to promote peace and nurture youth talent. He was also associated with the founding of Bezza-Al-Hijji Secondary School in Adjumani, a community institution created to provide education opportunities for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Although founded as an Islamic school, it opened admission to students of all religious backgrounds, with a focus on academic excellence, moral values and character development.
He was, too, a farmer of note. Through his ESIA mixed model farm in Adjumani’s Ukusijoni sub-county, Ali demonstrated the value of investing in both crop production and livestock, and advocated for greater government investment in agriculture through improved road networks, mechanisation and access to markets. Adam Yusuf, a resident of Pakele town council in Adjumani, said the model farm Ali established in the 1990s greatly influenced agricultural development in the region. Richard Madraa Opili, a farmer, said Ali resettled people returning from exile through agriculture. “The time when co-operatives were operating, he was one of the outstanding cotton growers; he introduced cash crops. Because of this, many people were able to educate their children through cotton growing,” Opili said.
Remarkably, Ali was also a lifelong learner. Uganda Law Society president Isaac Ssemakadde, who studied with him at the Makerere University School of Law and later at the Law Development Centre, said the veteran politician enrolled to study law at 64 and was called to the Bar at 73, attending lectures alongside his son, Ahmed Kassim. Ali obtained a bachelor of laws degree from Makerere University and a diploma in legal practice from the Law Development Centre, having earlier undertaken military training at institutions in Uganda, Israel and the UK. According to Ssemakadde, Ali enriched classroom discussions by drawing on his vast experience in public service and regularly invited senior government officials to engage students on contemporary governance issues. “In class, he was the epitome of egalitarianism — no rank, no bodyguard and no gun in sight. He was simply one of us, learning on equal footing with the rest of the students.”
Former Vision Group chief executive officer Robert Kabushenga remembered Ali as a disciplined, decisive and courteous leader whose long public service left a complex but enduring legacy. Kabushenga said he first learnt of Ali in 1978, as a primary school pupil, when Ali was serving as Amin’s finance minister; their paths later crossed when Ali was deputy prime minister and Kabushenga was leading Vision Group. He recalled that Ali would sometimes visit his office without prior notice or an entourage, patiently waiting until he was received — respectful, businesslike and avoiding unnecessary displays of authority.
One of their encounters, Kabushenga said, involved concerns over rising ethnic and religious tensions in West Nile after one of Vision Group’s radio stations was accused of taking sides. Rather than escalate the matter, Ali chose dialogue, explaining the concerns and offering guidance on how the media house could handle the situation — a demonstration, Kabushenga said, of Ali’s preference for resolving challenges through engagement rather than political pressure. He also recalled Ali’s determination to attain the rank of full General, saying the veteran politician personally requested Vision Group to publish his photograph on the front page when celebrations were held in his home area after his promotion. “Where others were wont to pull rank, he asked politely,” Kabushenga said. He also highlighted Ali’s interest in documenting the history of Uganda’s Nubi community through a book he authored.
Ali became known, too, for repeatedly surviving rumours of his own death — earning him comparisons to a cat with nine lives. On several occasions, reports circulated that he had passed on, only for him to reappear and dismiss the claims. During one such incident, he joked that only he and Jesus had died and resurrected.
Former Gulu University guild president Dr Alfred Anyama said Ali was a leader willing to put aside personal political interests for the broader development agenda of the Ma’di sub-region. “We remember him for his humility and ability to sacrifice personal ambitions for the broader interest of the region,” he said. On reconciliation, Anyama recalled an occasion when Ali, while serving as chairperson of the West Nile Development Agenda (WENDA), invited him to the final funeral rites of his sister — a ceremony during which Ali and Adjumani district chairperson Ben Anyama reconciled after nearly two decades of strained relations.
Tributes have continued to pour in from across the country. Former NRM party chairperson for eastern region, Capt. Mike Mukula, described Ali as a distinguished patriot, freedom fighter and statesman who dedicated his life to serving Uganda, saying in a social media post that his contribution to the struggle for peace, national unity, stability and reconstruction would remain engraved in the country’s history.
Leaders from West Nile described him as a father figure, statesman and unifying force whose contribution to the region and Uganda would be remembered for generations. WENDA said the region and country had lost “a father, a statesman, a patriot and a founding pillar” of the organisation, with executive director Moses Akuma calling his passing a major loss to both West Nile and Uganda. Former Moyo district vice-chairperson Sam Asusi described Ali as a champion of the Madi people and a hero whose service would continue to inspire future generations, while former gender minister Zoe Bakoko Bakoru said West Nile and Uganda had lost one of their brightest leaders, describing his death as the extinguishing of “our brightest light and candle.”
Veteran affairs state minister and Aringa East MP Huda Oleru Abason called the death a significant loss to the region, crediting Ali for his key role in West Nile’s development. Former Koboko North MP Elly Asiku, who served as a commander in UNRF, said Ali’s death had left a huge gap among the people of West Nile, describing him as a symbol of unity and a leader who nurtured many people now serving in government. Former Aringa County MP Ashraf Noah Olega, who chairs the Aringa Obongi Peace Initiative Committee, remembered Ali as a mentor, hero and counsellor whose guidance shaped many lives, while Madi Cultural Institution premier Amacha Goli encouraged residents to carry on his legacy.
