Joseph Balikudembe a senior news reporter with Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi’s Central Broadcasting Services (CBS) radio has written a protest letter to his bosses rioting over dismissal from his job without giving him a fair hearing.
Balikudembe confirmed his dismissal explaining that all his troubles resulted from a letter that Kampala City Lord Mayor Ssalongo Erias Lukwago wrote to his immediate supervisor and also news editor Esther Wamala accusing him of being biased against him when reporting his news.
“My concern is not about being dismissed from CBS because I know the radio is not my family’s property but my concern is them not giving me a fair hearing to defend myself because all the claims Lukwago raised are false. I have to fight for my right not because I want to stay on that job until I die, but Lukwago being a lawyer should be the one to guide Wamala when taking such a reckless decision,” a tough speaking Balikudembe said.
He revealed that for over fifteen years, he has been deployed to cover Lukwago and he has been loyal to his supervisor Wamala and Lukwago himself.
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Wamala who in 2020 tried to apply for a National Unity Platform (NUP) ticket to contest as Lwengo district chairperson and was denied the opportunity disclosed that after a fruitless endeavor in politics, he reported back to the station and resumed practicing his profession.
In 2025, he again applied for the same ticket but was denied the opportunity.
He was however shocked when Lukwago wrote to his bosses asking them to dismiss him from the job claiming that he is a NUP foot soldier and he is using his job to publicize NUP candidates in the city especially Ronald Balimwezo who is contesting against him.
Like Abbey Mukiibi the CBS radio programs manager did to celebrated sports journalist Yusuf Baliruno, Wamala also just made a phone call to Balikudembe informing him that he has been dismissed from the radio because of a complaint raised by Lukwago.
As he tried to defend himself, she hung up the phone.
When he went to the station to give his side, he was told never to come back to the radio.
He insisted that his right has to be respected and Lukwago should provide evidence to support the allegations he against him in his complaint.
Ono Bwino has tried to talk to Wmala but by press time, she has been not picking our calls to her known phone numbers to respond to the allegations.
We have also tried calling Lukwago but when he picked our phone call, he told us that he was in the meeting and promised to return to us and give a comment.
The development comes at a time when it has been confirmed that CBS also dismissed senior journalist Nsereko Ssebuliba over allegations of annoying powerful individuals running the Kingdom affairs.
Balikudembe is not the first journalist to be fired from the job for annoying those with power, a senior journalist was fired from one of the leading news papers for writing stories favouring Uganda Law Society president Isaac Ssemakadde because the one with power was threatening to sue the news paper.
