Ugandan Military Chief Orders Closure of Daily Monitor and NTV, Rejects 'Free Press'

Ugandan military chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba on Sunday said that he had ordered the closure of two of Uganda's major media outlets. He justified the move by saying that he did not believe in "free press." Kainerugaba is the son of President Yoweri Museveni, who has led the country since 1986.

In a series of posts on the platform X, Kainerugaba announced the closure of the Daily Monitor daily and the NTV broadcaster, insisting it was within the purview of powers delegated to him by the presidency. "In Uganda, I do not believe in a free press! The press should be guided by cadres of the revolution," Kainerugaba said. "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 [Yoweri Museveni]," he said. "NTV and Daily Monitor are learning about it today."

He also said this was "just the beginning" and threatened to "arrest many more." The comments were accompanied by a flurry of other posts on X over several hours that included vulgar jokes and insults and apparent threats of arrest directed against Ugandan public figures, as well as a post suggesting he wanted to expel all Turkish citizens from Uganda.

Kainerugaba has been touted as a possible successor to his father Museveni. He is known for controversial social media outbursts, including a post in which he threatened to behead opposition leader Bobi Wine. He has served as Uganda's top military commander since 2024.

Both the daily and the broadcaster are owned by the Kenya-based Nation Media Group (NMG). The Daily Monitor reported on Sunday that military personnel had been deployed to NMG's headquarters in the Ugandan capital, Kampala. It added that staff were prevented from entering or leaving the premises during the raid. Uganda's National Association of Broadcasters said at least six NMG publishing and broadcasting outlets in Uganda were closed. NMG managing director Susan Nsibirwa told Reuters news agency she did not have an immediate comment.

Edited by: Srinivas Mazumdaru