Uganda’s military chief orders shutdown of two media outlets

The president’s son said he did not believe in a free press as military personnel were deployed to the media offices.The chief of Uganda’s military says he has ordered the closure of two of the country’s biggest media outlets.Muhoozi Kainerugaba said on Sunday that the Daily Monitor, the country’s largest independent daily newspaper, and Uganda" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="154213" data-entity-type="organization">NTV Uganda, one of the largest private broadcasters, were being shut down and would not reopen without his permission.“In Uganda, I do not believe in a free press!” Kainerugaba, who is the president’s son, wrote on X.“From now on ALL bad stories about Uganda have to be cleared by my office!” he said in one of a series of posts, adding that all media in Uganda would follow the rules, going forward.Military personnel deployedBoth the Daily Monitor and Uganda" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="154213" data-entity-type="organization">NTV Uganda are owned by the Nation Media Group (NMG) conglomerate. The Daily Monitor said armed security personnel were outside NMG Uganda’s headquarters in Namuwongo, Kampala and its Serena Hotel location, with staff reporting “no one was being allowed to enter or leave.”Uganda" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="154213" data-entity-type="organization">NTV Uganda, Spark TV and other TV and radio broadcasters owned by NMG were down in the country on Sunday, the Reuters news agency reported.According to Kainerugaba, he has had the power to shut down any media outlet since 2017, when his father, President Yoweri Museveni, granted him this ability.Kainerugaba is seen as the likely successor to his father, who has ruled Uganda since 1986 and is also known to write controversial social media posts.His government shut down the Daily Monitor for 10 days in 2013, and in 2007, Uganda" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="154213" data-entity-type="organization">NTV Uganda was taken off air months after its launch, following government criticism of its coverage.