MBARARA – The Mbarara Resident District Commissioner, Lt Col (Rtd) James Mwesigye, has asked Ugandans to be patient with NRM government and President Yoweri Museveni regarding the transition of leadership.
He said President Museveni has been working on transition that many Ugandans want by retiring senior army officers and ministers who fought in the liberation war that NRM to power.
“You do not know the logic behind President Museveni’s plan of retiring the senior generals in the army and senior ministers; it is because the President is implementing the transition of power to the young generation. So please rest your hopes in NRM government because transition is coming in Uganda in near future,” Lt Col Mwesigye said.
He was addressing FM Radio broadcasters Regional workshop held at Oxford Inn Mbarara organized by Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) on Tuesday.
Lt. Col Mwesigye further said: “In Cuba, the revolutionary leader Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz ordered to kill 60 senior cadres to remain in power but in Uganda, we do not kill people but the government promotes young people such that they can take the mantle of power.”
The workshop was attended by radio managers, station technical managers and programs directors. It was intended to raise awareness of the legal, technical, financial and listenership related requirements that are relevant to the operations of FM radio stations in Uganda.
“Remember media people we trust you because you have the power to guide or confuse public so do not kill your country by politicizing radio programs,” Lt Col Mwesigye said.
He urged media practitioners to be patriotic and ethical in serving the public instead of promoting the culture of political violence and ethical prejudice at the expense of national unity. He attributed bias, writing and airing sensational information to poor remuneration of journalists saying that a poor person cannot have an independent mind.
Lt. Col. Mwesigye asked UCC to compel media houses to enhance the salaries of their workers in order to avoid being influenced by selfish politicians.
He also asked journalists to establish other sources of income to supplement their meager salaries in order to develop their families.
Ms. Juliane Mweheire, the Director Industry Affairs and Content Development at UCC, who represented the executive director Eng. Godfery Mutabazi said that government is considering a review of the taxation law on the radio equipment because they are too expensive.
Ms. Mweheire asked the journalist to always observer minimum broadcasting standards while executing their duties if they are to avoid the crackdown on media.
