The vice chairperson of the Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU) in charge of Buganda Frank Gashumba has revealed that his boss Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) was shocked and wondered what he did for his press conference to be aired on NTV, a media house operating under the Nation Media Group Uganda
Gashumba was commenting on the standoff between the Nation Media Group Uganda, President Museveni and parliament leadership which resulted into banning of journalists practising with the said media house from covering Museveni personally and parliament.
“When our press conference was aired on NTV, even one of the bosses of that television phoned me wondering how I made it to be accommodated in their prime time news,” Gashumba claim
He added that even though he has been severally hosted on NTV previously, he is currently being ignored and when asked what happened, he alleges that he was told that he will be hosted again after disassociating himself from Gen Muhoozi.
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Ono Bwino has learnt from highly placed sources in Nation Media Uganda that the decision of not covering Muhoozi especially in his political activities resulted from his media handler’s failure to confirm to the media house leadership on Muhoozi’s primary agenda of participating in a partisan politics yet he is still a serving military officer.
Gashumba said that on several occasions, he has reach out to Nation media house bosses and asked them to assign reporters to cover their activities but he has received a cold shoulder from them and given no explanation for their absence
“I can assure you; Museveni will not talk to Susan Nsibirwa (CEO of nation media in Uganda), he will only discuss that issue with His Highness Prince Rahim Aga Khan the proprietor of that international news company. Museveni also has personal feelings, when you watch their news, they can read five items only concentrating on the opposition leading candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu (Bobi Wine) and Museveni is brought in in the last segments, is that fairness!” Gashumba wondered.
He added that Nsibirwa also made a big mistake when she addressed her company grievance against Museveni in the media. He advised that she would have consulted those who understand Museveni and asked for a private meeting with the president to discuss the matter privately.
Museveni and Muhoozi have always accused Nation media group of fighting them and in one of the comments on his X handle, Ofwono Opondo, the former media centre Chief Executive Officer and a candidate vying to represent the elderly in Eastern Uganda in parliament claimed that since its establishment, nation media has been fighting Museveni’s government
However, Charles Onyango Obbo, one of the founding editors of Monitor news paper, in his powerful article in one of this week’s papers revealed that Museveni himself used to personally send investigative dossiers exposing corrupt government officials in his government to monitor to be published and they hid him as a source.
He explained that the reason why currently Museveni is at war with monitor is because the leadership running the media house are not his peers and agemates as it was during the days of Wafula Ogutu who they usually met and held discussions.
Kira Municipality legislator who is also a former political journalist with monitor, Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda claimed that there are powerful people in Museveni’s government who hate nation media because of its way of covering news and these people are fuelling the fight between the media house and Museveni.
The development comes at a time when lands junior minister Dr Sam Mayanja is threatening to petitioned his boss claiming that the leadership of Bukedde news paper are using the government paper to undermined him before the public.
Mayanja claims that Bukedde only fronts news concerning Bobi Wine, Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi and other leaders of the Mengo establishment.
“We also understand the media, you always put a big picture on the page where you are writing about the president, it takes up a big space which would have been used to accommodate his message. And is the something doing on my paper the president ordered you to give me so as to educate his bibanja tenants” Mayanja claim
He added that he has to help his boss understand what is going on in government media houses noting that the reason why Museveni performed poorly in Buganda in 2021 is because of Mengo leadership who used the tactic of influencing media houses in the region.
“ If Ono Bwino, a Luganda private owned news paper writes like that against the president, I cannot complain because I know it is a private company and the owners decide on what to do with their business but you a government media house, I will not accept you to undermine my president,” Mayanja cautioned Bukedde.
It should be remembered that Robert Kabushenga was fired as the New Vision Chief Executive Office and replaced with Don Wanyama over allegations that he was favouring opposition and giving a lot of space to Kabaka’s government.
In his message when he was retiring, Geoffrey Kulubya, a charismatic journalist and former Bukedde news paper Chief Editor revealed that on several occasions, they were summoned to State House with Kabushenga to defend themselves over stories that allegedly undermined the president and promoted the opposition especially in Buganda where the major news paper circulation is.
Ssemujju said that because Wanyama understands why Kabushenga was fired, he makes sure that he is gives Museveni’s family members prominence in the new vision paper and on Bukedde television to the extent of giving Museveni a lot of titles like “Owekitiibwa enyo pulezidenti Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Tibuhabulwa ssabalwanyi genero” to make him happy.
