9 FM STATIONS REFUSE TO AIR OPPOSITION CONTENT IN UGANADA

Nine radio stations have declined to air campaign advertising material designed by the Inter-Party Cooperation to drum up support for their presidential candidate, Dr Kizza Besigye. The Director for Publicity and Communication at the IPC Campaign Bureau, Ms Margaret Wokuri, told Sunday Monitor that they had contacted the nine FM stations as part of their effort to spread their campaign message countrywide. Ms Wokuri said the stations are Super FM in Kampala District, Mighty Fire FM in Kitgum, Kiboga FM, Voice of Teso, Voice of Busoga, Rukungiri FM, Liberty FM in Masindi, Kinkizi FM in Kanungu, and Muhabura FM in Kisoro. Reluctant agents According to Ms Wokuri, when they contacted the sales agents of the nine FM stations to inquire whether they could do business with IPC, the agents for two of the radio stations, Kinkizi FM and Muhabura FM, flatly refused. The agents for the other seven promised to revert on whether they could do business with IPC after contacting their respective managers, but returned with negative responses. “For Super FM, they said they could not air our adverts because they didn’t agree with our content. They wanted to change the content, which of course we could not accept,” she said. Efforts to speak to the proprietor of Super FM, Mr Peter Ssematimba, were futile. Mr Ssematimba’s assistant, who picked his phone, said he would not be available to comment on the issue since he was addressing his supporters at various campaign rallies.