Soldiers were deployed outside the Kampala offices of the Daily Monitor early Sunday after Uganda’s military chief ordered the newspaper’s closure and warned that all media “will follow the rules.” The order came from Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the eldest son of President Yoweri Museveni, who has served as the top military commander since 2024 and has been tightening his grip with directives usually reserved for the head of state.
Who Has the Power
Kainerugaba said on X, his preferred channel of communication, “I have the power in Uganda to shut down ANY media house I want to,” and added, “I have had this power since 2017. This power was given to me by my great father.” He also wrote, “From now on ALL media in Uganda will follow the rules!” That’s not subtle. It’s a military boss announcing control over the press in public, with soldiers already outside the building to make the point.
The Daily Monitor is part of the Nation Media Group of companies, whose headquarters is in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital. Kainerugaba said his closure directive also targeted local broadcaster NTV, which is part of Nation Media Group. The National Association of Broadcasters said in a statement that at least six publishing and broadcasting outlets, all under Nation Media Group, were closed. “We are deeply concerned about this action and its impact on the media ecosystem,” the statement said.
Who Pays for the Order
The people at the bottom of this arrangement are the journalists, broadcasters and readers who get squeezed when armed power decides speech needs disciplining. The closure hit outlets under one corporate umbrella, and the soldiers outside the offices made the hierarchy plain. The message wasn’t about public debate. It was about obedience.
Kainerugaba asserts that he will succeed his father in the presidency, a possibility that has grown more likely as the 81-year-old leader relies heavily on his son’s military authority. Museveni has ruled Uganda since 1986 and has not said when he will retire. He has no rivals within the ruling party, which is why many believe the military will have a say in choosing his successor. The line between state, army and family power is doing a lot of work here, and ordinary people are expected to live under it.
The Family Firm at the Top
Earlier this month, Kainerugaba retaliated against a prominent attorney who sought to hold him accountable for his alleged role in the violation of the rights of opposition leader Kizza Besigye. Besigye was seized in Nairobi in 2024 and has since been imprisoned on treason charges he says are politically motivated. Besigye’s attorney, Erias Lukwago, was taken from his house and later charged with an offense related to the concealment of treason. The legal system, in this account, doesn’t stand apart from power. It moves when power tells it to.
Kainerugaba’s associates describe him as a dedicated military officer who often eschews ostentatious displays of wealth. They say he opposes official corruption and would punish it heavily as president. He attended military schools in the U.S. and Britain before taking charge of a presidential guard unit that has since been expanded into an elite group of special forces. In addition to his military duties, he is the founder of a political activist group known as the Patriotic League of Uganda. Its members and well-wishers range from the parliamentary speaker to government ministers.
That’s the machinery on display: soldiers at the doors, media outlets closed, a military chief speaking like the state already belongs to him, and a ruling circle where family, army and party blur into one hard shell. The press gets the warning first. Everyone else gets to live with it.