Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Uganda’s chief of defence forces and son of President Yoweri Museveni, has ordered the closure of NTV Uganda, Spark TV and Daily Monitor.
The affected media outlets, owned by Nation Media Group
(NMG), were forced to stop airing on Sunday after a crackdown by security
forces.
According to Daily Monitor, the crackdown began shortly
after midnight at the NMG premises, and that its staff reported that “no one
was being allowed to enter or leave the compound”.
Though no reasons were given for the closure of the outlets,
Daily Monitor said the crackdown comes amid a 2025 ban on NMG journalists from
covering Museveni’s public events.
Since the past week, Kainerugaba has made several threats
on X, the micro blogging platform, to
shut down NTV and Daily Monitor, saying he was awaiting permission from his
father.
In a post made in the wake to clampdown, Kainerugaba said he
does not believe in a free press in Uganda, and that the press should be “guided by cadres of the revolution”.
“I have the power in Uganda to shut down ANY media house I
want to. I have had this power since 2017. This power was given to me by my
great father President @KagutaMuseveni . NTV and Daily Monitor are learning
about it today,” Kainerugaba write in another post.
“Both NTV and Moniter will not re-open without my
permission.
“The closure of NTV and Monitor is just the beginning. We
are going to arrest many more.
“In Uganda, I DO NOT believe in a free press! The press
should be guided by cadres of the revolution.“
Museveni, 81, who has been in power since 1986, was
re-elected in January for a seventh term after a landslide victory in a
disputed election.
Kainerugaba has been widely tipped as a potential successor.
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