KAMPALA — In an unprecedented and sweeping crackdown on press freedom, Ugandan armed security personnel forced the country’s leading independent television stations off the air early Sunday morning following a direct directive from the Chief of Defence Forces, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
By 5:00 AM local time, viewers tuning into NTV Uganda and Spark TV—both owned by East Africa’s largest independent media conglomerate, Nation Media Group (NMG)—were met with blank screens and “video unavailable” error messages. The blackout rapidly extended across NMG’s radio portfolio, pulling popular stations 93.3 KFM and 90.4 Dembe FM off the airwaves without official notice.
Midnight Raid and Campus Siege
The targeted operation began shortly after midnight on Sunday, June 28, 2026. Heavily armed security forces simultaneously surrounded NMG Uganda’s primary headquarters in the Namuwongo industrial area and its broadcast studios at the Kampala Serena Hotel.
Terrified employees trapped inside the facilities reported that a strict security perimeter had been established, with soldiers completely blocking anyone from entering or exiting the compounds.
The physical siege followed a volatile, late-night tirade on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) by Gen Muhoozi, who is the son of long-standing President Yoweri Museveni.
“NTV and Monitor are being shut down from today!” Gen Muhoozi declared in a post timestamped at 1:07 AM. He followed up shortly after, writing: “Both NTV and Monitor will not re-open without my permission.”
In a blunt dismissal of democratic norms, the top military commander explicitly stated his stance on independent journalism: “In Uganda, I DO NOT believe in a free press! The press should be guided by cadres of the revolution.”
Growing State Hostility
The sudden shutdown is the culmination of a week of mounting government threats against NMG Uganda, which employs more than 500 people in the country. Gen Muhoozi had previously claimed he was awaiting authorization from President Museveni to dismantle the media house, which has long been barred from covering the president’s official functions.
As day broke in Kampala, the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), the Uganda Police Force, and the regulatory Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) maintained a strict wall of silence. No formal legal orders, warrants, or explanations have been made public to justify the state-enforced blackout.
A History of Confrontation
This is not the first time NMG’s commitment to independent journalism has made it a target of state aggression.
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In 2007: NTV Uganda was forced off the air by state agents just two months after its launch due to allegedly “negative” news coverage.
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In 2013: Police violently raided and sealed the Daily Monitor and Dembe FM premises for over a week after the newspaper published a leaked political letter regarding a controversial succession plan widely known as the “Muhoozi Project.”
President Museveni has historically vilified the Daily Monitor, previously branding it an “enemy and evil newspaper” for its investigative reporting.
Despite decades of legal and physical intimidation, NMG Uganda has historically doubled down on its identity as “Uganda’s Bold Voice.” With security forces still heavily deployed around the blank-screen broadcasters and silent radio towers, the future of independent journalism in Uganda remains deeply uncertain.
