# Uganda army chief orders military shutdown of Nation Media Group, declaring 'I do not believe in a free press'
> Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, son of President Museveni and chief of defence forces, sent soldiers overnight to occupy the Daily Monitor, NTV Uganda and Spark TV, forcing all broadcasts off air and barring journalists; outlets remain under siege

**Meta:** type: event · date: 2026-06-28 · heads: What Broke, Who Decides · 5 takes · 3 lenses · 5 regions

## Summary

Uganda's Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, President Yoweri Museveni's son and designated political heir, ordered armed soldiers to raid and occupy the premises of Nation Media Group (NMG) Uganda overnight on June 27-28, shutting down NTV Uganda, Spark TV, KFM, Dembe FM and the Daily Monitor. Troops cut power at the Namuwongo headquarters and the Kampala Serena International Conference Centre broadcast facilities; NTV Uganda and Spark TV went dark by 5:00 AM local time. In a series of X posts, Muhoozi wrote: "In Uganda, I DO NOT believe in a free press! The press should be guided by cadres of the revolution." He later said the outlets "will not reopen without his permission" and that Museveni would have final approval on any reopening, signaling he acted with presidential backing. The Federation of African Journalists condemned the raids as illegal. As of June 29, the media houses remain under military siege.

## Why it matters

The shutdown is the most direct assault on Uganda's independent press in two decades and tests how far Muhoozi's political consolidation will go before the 2026 succession. It also signals to East Africa's remaining independent media that military force, not courts or regulators, is the real threat.

## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens)

### major international wire with on-ground reporting from Kampala; first major English-language account
- **CNN International** (United States, en) — CNN reported that Uganda's Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba ordered soldiers to raid and shut down Nation Media Group outlets on June 28, citing what he called hostile coverage of Uganda's leadership. Muhoozi declared 'I DO NOT believe in a free press!' in an X post that accompanied the military deployment.
  > "Uganda's military chief ordered the closure of the Daily Monitor and NTV Uganda, declaring he did 'not believe in a free press.'"
  Source: https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/28/africa/uganda-media-outlets-shut-down-intl

### Uganda's leading independent daily; the subject of the shutdown, filing its own account from inside the siege
- **Daily Monitor** (Uganda, en) — The Daily Monitor reported that armed soldiers occupied its Namuwongo premises and the Kampala Serena hotel broadcast centre overnight, cutting electricity and forcing NTV Uganda and Spark TV off air by 5:00 AM local time. Muhoozi's 1:07 AM post declared the shutdown before troops arrived; the paper confirmed no legal instrument or regulatory order accompanied the closure.
  > "NTV Uganda, Spark TV forced off air as Daily Monitor shutdown on Gen Muhoozi order."
  Source: https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/ntv-uganda-spark-tv-forced-off-air-as-daily-monitor-shutdown-on-gen-muhoozi-order-5511464

### unlabelled
- **Al Jazeera** (Qatar, en) — 
  Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/6/28/ugandas-military-chief-orders-shutdown-of-two-media-outlets
- **The Citizen (Tanzania)** (Tanzania, en) — 
  Source: https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/tanzania/news/east-africa-news/-i-don-t-believe-in-a-free-press-uganda-army-chief-muhoozi-shuts-down-ntv-spark-tv-daily-monitor-5511546
- **IBTimes UK** (United Kingdom, en) — 
  Source: https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/ugandan-military-chief-shuts-down-media-outlets-1805529

## Across the graph
- Entities: The Coup Belt, Courts vs Elected Power

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Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/en/n/muhoozi-uganda-media-shutdown-jun28