After newspaper removed a top staff-man, the president suggests the editor was victimized for publishing a poll that showed him in the lead.
Clandestine nature of president’s meeting raises questions about State House motives.
President Museveni has spoken out on the controversy surrounding an opinion poll published by Daily Monitor recently, leading to the sacking of its managing editor.
Daily Monitor executive editor Malcom Gibson last week gave Don Wanyama marching orders, saying the newspaper was restructuring and his position had been phased out.
However, it is believed, and Wanyama himself insists, that his sacking was related to the opinion poll earlier published by the paper.
The poll puts Yoweri Museveni ahead of former prime minister and NRM secretary general Amama Mbabazi and any other possible candidate, giving the president a comfortable 57 per cent of the vote if elections were held today.
There have been allegations that the poll was planted by Museveni’s agents to kill off Mbabazi’s expected challenge, leading to Wanyama’s sacking. However, Wanyama insists that the poll, which was conducted by research firm Ipsos, was ordered by Daily Monitor. Now President Museveni has weighed in, accusing the newspaper of victimizing its managing editor simply for publishing a genuine opinion poll.
“It is the Monitor which initiated the idea of conducting an opinion poll. We did not ask them to conduct the poll. It came out with the results which are well known to all Ugandans anyway (NRM is still popular). Why do you victimize an individual for it,” Museveni said.
The president made these remarks during a hastily-convened closed-door meeting with selected journalists at Kisoro State Lodge on Saturday.
Meeting about 60 journalists from print and broadcast media houses across the country, Museveni accused the scribes of writing “only bad things” about his government and ignoring the good things.
According to our sources, Museveni said his government had invested heavily in infrastructural development, citing the ongoing road projects and the revamping of the National Agricultural Advisory Services (Naads). The media, he said, should highlight these and other achievements.
The meeting, which started at 9am lasted for about an hour. Thereafter, Museveni went to Kanungu district as part of his tour of Kigezi sub-region. Documents seen by The Observer indicate that this meeting was coordinated by Evelyn Anite, the Youth MP for northern Uganda.
A January 16 memo from the president’s press secretary to the head of the Special Forces Command asked security to clear the journalists for the Kisoro meeting.
“The journalists listed here below have been invited to Kisoro for a media meeting with HE the President. They are coordinated by Hon Evelyn Anite and will be accompanied by information officer Ambrose Nahabwe,” the memo reads.
Attached to the memo was a list of names of the journalists. However, not all the journalists on the list made it to Kisoro. Some opted out at the last minute, our sources said. A female journalist from a prominent Kampala FM radio station reportedly missed the bus to Kisoro because she arrived late.
The meeting, according to documents seen by The Observer, was classified as a “media meeting” and was not intended to be a press briefing.
The journalists left Kampala on Friday morning and arrived in Kisoro late at night.
It is not clear what criterion was used to select the journalists for the meeting. Sources have told us that the journalists who attended the Kisoro meeting were discretely contacted by phone. They were informed about the travel arrangements and told they would also have an opportunity to discuss journalism-related problems with the president.
They were told to keep this information and deliberations from the meeting, to themselves. Some of the prominent media houses whose journalists were invited to the meeting included Daily Monitor, New Vision, The Observer, Red Pepper, NTV, Press TV, Radio One, Capital FM and Radio West.
Other media houses with listed journalists included Gulu FM, Radio Paidha, NBS radio, Liberty radio, Kagadi radio, Voice of Toro, Voice of Kigezi, Spirit FM, Rwenzori FM, Grace Radio, Radio Veros, Hits FM and Radio Rhino.
Our sources said that once in Kisoro, the journalists were under the care of Youth MP Anite, whose profile has risen since she moved the Museveni sole-candidate resolution in Kyankwanzi in February 2014. However, although our sources said that she was part of the meeting, Anite on Saturday dissociated herself from it, saying she was, instead, meeting her own supporters.
“No one has told me to coordinate any meeting between the president and journalists…maybe some people are trying to say that they should be coordinated. I am in Koboko right now and not in Kisoro,” Anite said by telephone.
Museveni said his interaction with the media was important because journalists help bridge the gap between government and the people. He said he would have liked to meet media practitioners regularly but did not have enough time.
About Joram Mwesigye, the Old Kampala district police commander who roughed up a WBS journalist last week, Museveni said he had not been made aware of the incident. But he pledged to follow up the matter, adding that government would bring him to book if he is found guilty of any wrongdoing.
Eye on 2016?
Some analysts have interpreted Museveni’s reaching out to the media as part of a broader strategy by the NRM to put journalists under its wing ahead of the 2016 elections. Sources say a number of journalists had been privately approached and persuaded to play a role in shoring up the party’s political image.
The luring, The Observer has learned, is being done by some party officials, with MPs like Anite playing an anchor role. But some of the journalists who attended the meeting privately feared a backlash from their media houses. A potential source of concern for newsroom managers was that they were not consulted to determine who they deployed for this meeting.
“We have seen the changes happening at The Monitor [as a result of a poll]. Some of our bosses might interpret our meeting with the president as if we are striking a deal. But he is the president of Uganda and is entitled to meet all people, including journalists,” one broadcast journalist told us on Monday.
FRENCH VERSION
Caractère clandestin de la réunion du Président soulève desquestions sur les motifs de State House.
Le Président Museveni a exprimé sur la polémique entourant unsondage d’opinion publié par le Daily Monitor récemment,entraînant le limogeage de son rédacteur en chef.
Daily Monitor executif Malcom Gibson la semaine dernière a donné Don Wanyama ordres, dit le journal était enrestructuration et avait quitté son poste.
Toutefois, on croit, et Wanyama lui-même insiste sur le fait, queson limogeage était lié à du sondage d’opinion publié plus tôt parle papier.
Le sondage met Yoweri Museveni devant l’ancien premierministre et NRM Secrétaire général Amama Mbabazi et tout autrecandidat possible, donner au Président un confortable 57 pourcent des suffrages si les élections ont eu lieu aujourd’hui.
Il y a eu des allégations que le scrutin a été planté par des agentsde Museveni à tuer Miki est prévu défi, conduisant au limogeagede Wanyama. Cependant, Wanyama insiste sur le fait que lesondage, qui a été mené par la firme de recherche Ipsos, a étéordonné par le Daily Monitor. Maintenant le Président Musevenia pesé, accusant le quotidien de victimiser son rédacteur en cheftout simplement pour avoir publié un sondage d’opinionvéritable.
“C’est le moniteur qui a lancé l’idée de mener un sondaged’opinion. On n’a pas demandé d’effectuer le sondage. Il est sortiavec les résultats qui sont reconnus à tous les ougandais de toute façon (NRM est encore populaire). Pourquoi vous victimiser unepersonne pour lui,”a déclaré Museveni.
Le Président a fait ces remarques lors d’une rencontre huis closconvoquées à la hâte avec les journalistes à Kisoro État Lodge lesamedi.
Rencontre environ 60 journalistes de médias imprimés etélectroniques à travers le pays, Museveni a accusé les scribesd’écrire « seulement de mauvaises choses » sur songouvernement et en ignorant les bonnes choses.
Selon nos sources, Museveni a déclaré que son gouvernementavait beaucoup investi dans le développement des infrastructures,en citant les projets en cours de route et la mise à jour desServices consultatifs agricoles nationales (Naads). Les médias, dit-il, devraient mettre en lumière ces et autres réalisations.
La réunion, qui a débuté à 09:00 a duré environ une heure. Après,Museveni se rendit au district de Kanungu dans le cadre de satournée de Kigezi sous-région. Vu par The Observer lesdocuments indiquent que cette réunion était coordonnée parEvelyn Anite, le député de la jeunesse de Nord de l’Ouganda.
Une note 16 janvier attachée de presse du Président à la tête ducommandement des Forces spéciales a demandé sécurité poureffacer les journalistes pour la réunion de Kisoro.
“Les journalistes énumérés ci-dessous ont été invités à Kisoropour une rencontre de presse avec HE le Président. Ils sontcoordonnés par Hon Evelyn Anite et seront accompagnées parl’agent d’information Ambrose Nahabwe, » le mémo lit.
Une liste des noms des journalistes s’accompagnait le mémo.Cependant, pas tous les journalistes sur la liste fait à Kisoro.Certains choisi à la dernière minute, nos sources a dit. Unejournaliste d’une station de radio FM de Kampala éminenteauraient raté le bus à Kisoro que parce qu’elle est arrivé en retard.
La réunion, selon des documents vus par The Observer, a étéclassifiée comme une « réunion de médias”et n’était pas censéeêtre un point de presse.
Il n’est pas clair de quel critère a été utilisé pour sélectionner lesjournalistes pour la réunion. Sources nous ont dit que lesjournalistes qui ont assisté à la réunion de Kisoro ont étédiscrètement contactés par téléphone. Ils ont été informés sur lesarrangements de voyage et a dit qu’ils aurait également l’occasionde discuter des problèmes liés au journalisme avec le Président.
On leur a dit de garder ces informations et les délibérations de laréunion, à eux-mêmes. Parmi les maisons emblématique dujournalisme, dont les journalistes ont été invités à la réunion DailyMonitor, nouvelle Vision, The Observer, poivron rouge, NTV, PressTV, Radio One, Capital FM et Radio West.
Autres maisons de médias aux journalistes cotées incluses GuluFM, Radio Paidha, radio NBS, radio Liberty, radio Kagadi, voix deToro, voix de Kigezi, esprit FM, FM Rwenzori, Grace Radio, RadioVeros, Hits FM et Radio Rhino.
Nos sources dit qu’une fois à Kisoro, les journalistes étaient sousla garde de jeunes MP Anite, dont le profil a augmenté depuis elle a déménagé à la résolution de sole-candidat de Museveni àKyankwanzi en février 2014. Toutefois, bien que nos sources a ditqu’elle faisait partie de la réunion, Anite samedi dissocié elle-même, disant qu’elle était, au lieu de cela, rencontre ses proprespartisans.
“Personne ne m’a dit de coordonner toute rencontre entre lePrésident et les journalistes… peut-être que certaines personnestentent de dire qu’ils devraient être coordonnées. Je suis àKoboko dès maintenant et pas à Kisoro,”Anite a déclaré partéléphone.
