UCC, media owners agree to ‘suspend’ news executives

The Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) have agreed that several journalists that are under probe by the regulator “step aside for one month” until investigations are done.
In a brief meeting with journalists after meeting NAB officials at the Commission’s offices in Kampala, Mr Godfrey Mutabazi, the UCC executive director, said the decision to force the journalists to “step aside” is in the best interests of the ongoing probe to ascertain whether journalists breached the minimum broadcasting standards.
“They [journalists] will not leave employment but step aside to pave way for investigations” Mr Mutabazi said yesterday.
“They can make you a manager, director or whatever but what we are going to investigate is the character of that individual as embedded in the content he [her] brought on air,” he added.
About two weeks ago, UCC ordered several media houses, including; NBS TV, BBS TV, NTV, Bukedde TV, Kingdom TV and Salt TV; Radio stations Akaboozi, Beat FM, Capital FM, Pearl FM, Sapientia FM and Radio Simba to suspend journalists and editors, accusing them of failure to adhere to set broadcasting standards.
The directive to media houses, however, has generated heated debate with rights activists and observers reasoning that the order is illegal and only intended to stop media houses from giving coverage to Opposition politicians ahead of the 2021 elections.
In the ongoing debate, media owners and managers requested to meet UCC officials, a meeting which was granted on Tuesday.
Mr Kin Karisa, the NAB chairman, said shortly after the meeting with UCC, “we are continuing to protest as we have always done” the UCC’s decision to order the suspension of staff but added that “I do not think investigation will stop media houses to operate.”
“We can ask them [journalists] to take up other roles. So they won’t leave offices or media houses as we allow UCC to investigate,” Mr Karisa said.
Mr Daniel Kalinaki, the general manager, Editorial, Nation Media Group-Uganda, the mother company of NTV, said they are cooperating with the regulator with the view of resolving the impasse.
“We have provided UCC with the footage they asked for and are cooperating with their investigation. Once we are told what we did wrong, we will take the necessary steps to make amends,” Mr Kalinaki said.
Capt Francis Babu, a media proprietor and member of NAB, told this newspaper on Tuesday that there were some disagreements in the meeting on how investigations will be done but a resolution was taken which binds them all.

Babu, Mutabazi clash over UCC directive

Daily Monitor’s Paul Tajuba has, with slight edits, transcribed the outburst between Captain Francis Babu and Uganda Communications Commission boss Godfrey Mutabazi. This was on Tuesday during a closed door meeting between National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) members and UCC officials.

Babu: The way you handled this case is extremely shabby. You should have handled it in better away. It has gone out internationally. We are ashamed …I was disgusted. I heard journalists in Parliament insulting you, I was annoyed. I heard people saying all sorts of things, the way you handled it. It could have been handled better, we would have listened to you. And this habit has started here. You like going to newspapers and intimidate us.

And that is something I do not like. You should talk to us. We listen. And we are strong as you are. We like this industry. This industry employs people and it is an economic venture in this country and it is good that we have it as a powerful industry. I want you to imagine something; Aljazeera, BBC, CNN are putting everything on air which are insulting and then our media here are up in chains somewhere. Now, what are we regulating?...
This reminds me during the war, when we stopped listening to our radios here and we would listen to BBC because they would tell us what was happening.
Mutabazi: Captain, kindly stick to the issue.
Babu: No, I am sticking to the issue
Mutabazi: You are not…
Babu: I am. This is where the problem is. You do not want us to talk to you. We come here and you gag us. Let us talk to you. Listen, do not gag then bring this, you want your point to be listened to but you do not want to listen to us.
Mutabazi: I think I am going to discipline you.
Babu: Discipline me? You? Mr Mutabazi to discipline me? Why? Because I have come here and spoken the truth? Why should you discipline me?
Kin Karisa: Hon Babu, lets us listen to each other.
Babu: No, he wants to discipline me at my age? No no no Mr Mutabazi time has come for us to tell you the truth. We want to work with you but you must work with us and to respect you, do not disrespect us.
Karisa: Hon Babu, he is chairman.
Babu: I agree
Karisa: He called us for a meeting.
Babu: Yes, but he has to listen to the other side of the story he doesn’t get
Karisa: But do not insult.
Babu: I am not insulting him, I am not.
Karisa: Because at the end of the day, all these people running media houses need some resolutions to go back and work.
Babu: Yes.
Karisa: But we cannot have a meeting where tempers are flaring.
Babu: Mr Chairman, the tempers are flaring because we have been mistreated. If we were treated well, I would not be speaking this way.
Karisa: He is a regulator.
Babu: I respect him as a regulator and I have said so. And I repeat it but I am not happy. I am not going to have UCC run our companies. But if you do not want us to talk and Mr Karisa, you have joined him, fine.
Karisa: No, do not blackmail me.
Babu: I am going to speak what hurts me and I am not going to give up on this. But if you do not want me to speak fine, this problem is not going to be solved.

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