By Swift Reporter
President Yoweri Museveni on Friday held talks with Tanzanian businessman Rostam Aziz, the incoming majority shareholder of Nation Media Group (NMG), in a significant development that could influence ongoing efforts to resolve the closure of Daily Monitor and NTV Uganda.
The meeting took place at State House Entebbe and marks the clearest indication yet that Uganda’s highest political leadership is directly engaged in discussions over the future of the country’s largest independent media house.
Announcing the meeting on his official X account, President Museveni said: “Today at State House Entebbe, I met Mr. Rostam Azizi, Chairman of the Taifa Group of Companies.”
Photographs released by the Presidency showed Aziz accompanied by Georgia Mutagaywa, Chief of Staff at Taarifa Limited, the company through which he is acquiring a controlling stake in Nation Media Group, as well as another senior company official.
The meeting comes weeks after security agencies suspended Nation Media Group-Uganda’s operations, halting the printing of the Daily Monitor newspaper and taking NTV Uganda, Spark TV, KFM and Dembe FM off air.
Before meeting the President, Aziz had also held discussions with the Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, at the Special Forces Command headquarters in Entebbe. The meeting was also attended by Aziz’s son, Saam Aziz, and other company executives.
The discussions form part of ongoing engagements between the government and the incoming investor as authorities seek assurances regarding the future editorial direction of Nation Media Group’s Ugandan operations.
Government has maintained that the suspension of the media outlets followed a security-led investigation ordered by President Museveni and involving the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) and other security agencies.
In March, Aziz’s company, Taarifa Limited, signed an agreement to acquire the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development’s 54.08 percent controlling stake in Nation Media Group, representing approximately 92.6 million shares.
The talks have also reportedly touched on possible changes to Nation Media Group-Uganda’s management and editorial structure, although neither the company nor the government has publicly confirmed whether any decisions have been reached.
Neither the Presidency nor Nation Media Group disclosed details of Friday’s discussions or indicated when the affected media outlets are expected to resume operations.
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