Daily Express Journalist Seeks Bail Over Fake News and Licensing Charges

Jailed Daily Express journalist Remmy Asiteza is seeking release on bail from the Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s court. Asiteza stands accused of publishing fake news and operating a broadcast service without the necessary license.

Appearing before Chief Magistrate Ritah Neumbe Kidasa, Asiteza presented three individuals – Samuel Kizito (a software developer), Emmanuel Adowa (a surveyor), and Irene Rukundo (an IT manager) – as his sureties. His legal team urged the court to grant bail under lenient terms.

However, the prosecution requested an adjournment to review the bail application and prepare a formal response. The court has scheduled the next hearing for September 21, 2026, to allow the prosecution to present its case.

The charges against Asiteza stem from an article allegedly published on the Daily Express website in early July 2026. The report, titled “Museveni Orders ISO Probe into Billions Swindled Under Assistant RDCs Recruitment Scheme,” purportedly implicated the Minister for the Presidency, Milly Babalanda, in a corruption scandal related to the recruitment of assistant resident district commissioners.

Prosecutors also allege that Asiteza and others operated the Daily Express website for broadcasting purposes without obtaining a license from the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC). Asiteza has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

His case is the latest in a series of prosecutions targeting journalists and online broadcasters in Uganda for alleged dissemination of false information and unlicensed operations. Recent cases include those of Arnold Anthony Mukose and Dean Lubowa Saava, who faced separate charges related to broadcasting without a license and spreading false information, with Lubowa also facing a civil defamation suit.

Source: The Observer (Uganda)