A new generation of leaders has officially entered Uganda’s Parliament after 527 Members of Parliament were sworn in during the three-day ceremony for the 12th Parliament.
Among the fresh faces attracting public attention are Lenia Charity Kevin and Robert Maseruka, now recognised as the youngest legislators in the new Parliament.
The two youthful politicians were both born years after the National Resistance Movement (NRM) came to power in 1986.
While both once had links to the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP), their political journeys later took different directions.
Lenia Charity Kevin: From Student Politics to Parliament
At just 24 years old, Lenia Charity Kevin has become one of the youngest women ever elected to Uganda’s Parliament.
She represents Vurra County in Arua District and is among the youngest MPs in the country’s history.
Her election has drawn comparisons with veteran politician Moses Ali, the 87-year-old Second Deputy Prime Minister and MP for Adjumani West, making Lenia more than six decades younger than one of Parliament’s oldest members.
Lenia first became known through student leadership at Makerere University Business School (MUBS), where she served as vice guild president.
In 2023, she contested for the MUBS guild presidency under the National Unity Platform (NUP) ticket but lost the race to Christopher Wasswa. Despite the defeat, she remained active in youth mobilisation and political advocacy.
Her political future became a major talking point in 2024 after she publicly announced that she had crossed from NUP to the ruling NRM party ahead of the 2026 general elections.
The move surprised many people, especially because she had previously been closely associated with NUP and had appeared in photos with party president Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine.
Still, Lenia insisted that her decision was based on her personal political ambitions and belief in building her career within the ruling party.
Beyond politics, Lenia has also been involved in advocacy and youth leadership initiatives.
According to her professional profile, she has worked as an advocacy strategist for the Refugee Women Leaders Network, programme coordinator at Gals Forum International, and youth representative on the World Liberty Congress.
She studied at St Mary’s S.S. Namaliga and Our Lady of Africa Mukono before earning a Bachelor’s degree in Procurement and Supply Chain Management from MUBS.
Robert Maseruka: The Former Makerere Guild President Who Stayed with NUP
Unlike Lenia, Mukono South MP Robert Maseruka remained loyal to the National Unity Platform throughout his political rise.
Born on February 24, 2000, Maseruka emerged from student leadership to become one of the youngest MPs in the country.
He defeated incumbent Fred Kayondo in a highly competitive parliamentary race to win the Mukono South seat.
Maseruka was born into a family of five children and is the third-born.
He attended Kireka Hill Infant School for his primary education, where he served as head prefect in Primary Six and Primary Seven.
For secondary school, he studied at Bugema Adventist Secondary School and later Wellstar Bright Secondary School in Mukono. During his A-Level studies, he again served as head prefect, showing early leadership potential.
In 2020, he joined Makerere University to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Communication.
While at the university, Maseruka became deeply involved in student politics. He served as president of the Journalism and Communication class from 2020 to 2023 and later represented the School of Languages, Literature and Communication in the Guild Representative Council. He also served as Speaker of Nsibirwa Hall.
His biggest breakthrough came in 2023 when he contested for Makerere University Guild President.
After the initial NUP flag bearer, Margaret Nattabi, was disqualified, Maseruka received the party endorsement and went on to win the election, becoming the 89th Guild President of Makerere University.
Following graduation in 2024, he was elected NUP secretary for Mukono District, strengthening his position within the party structures.
In 2025, he won the NUP primaries for the Mukono South parliamentary seat before later securing victory in the general election.
Uganda’s Youngest MP in History
Although Lenia Charity Kevin and Robert Maseruka are currently the youngest legislators in the 12th Parliament, Uganda’s record for the youngest MP in history is still widely believed to belong to Proscovia Alengot Oromait.
In 2012, Oromait was elected to Parliament at just 19 years old, becoming not only Uganda’s youngest MP at the time but also one of the youngest lawmakers in Africa.
