Addis Ababa: Uganda woke on Sunday, June 28, to news that security forces had shut down broadcaster NTV Uganda and newspaper Daily Monitor following an order by the country’s army chief, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
NTV Uganda, part of the Nation Media Group headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, has been one of Uganda’s leading independent media outlets since launching operations in December 2006.
In a statement, Nation Media Group said its operations in Uganda had been suspended after soldiers raided its premises in the early hours of Sunday and electricity to the facilities was subsequently disconnected.
General Kainerugaba, who is also the son of President Yoweri Museveni, did not provide a detailed explanation for the closure in posts on his X account, where he announced the action.
The army chief also said he was seeking to arrest Susan Nsibirwa, the managing director of Nation Media Group Uganda, though he did not specify the grounds for the proposed arrest.
The move has triggered widespread criticism from media rights and press freedom organizations, including the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), which raised concerns over the implications for media freedom in Uganda.
Despite the uproar, local reports indicate that informal discussions are underway with the military chief in an effort to resolve the dispute and reopen the media outlets.
