Wednesday, August 3, 2011

COMPLAINT AGAINST GROUND ZERO MODERATOR MR. TONY OWANA

Vincent Nuwagaba
c/o Political Science Department
Makerere University
P.O BOX 7062, Kampala
July 27, 2011

The Managing Director
Uganda Broadcasting Corporation

RE: COMPLAINT AGAINST GROUND ZERO MODERATOR MR. TONY OWANA
This serves to raise complaints against the above mentioned UBC Staff. I am a law-abiding citizen of Uganda who treasures lively debate as a means of solving problems that we are confronted with as a nation. For more than a month now, I have been blocked from airing my views on UBC Ground Zero programme. The reason Mr. Owana gave me is that I am critical of the ruling party and that my views will poison the listeners.
You will forgive me for questioning Mr. Owana’s education level but I know any intellectual would cherish free debate. Any intellectual would believe in the flourishing of ideas. The essence of humanity is the acceptance of diversity. We cannot have similar ideas just like we don’t have similar looks. One of the leading enlightenment philosophers, Voltaire said, “I disagree with what you say but I will to death defend your right to say it”. Accordingly, I am shocked that Owana feels his duty is to stifle critical voices.
I may not be the most knowledgeable Ugandan but I can state without any fear of contradiction that I am not a fool in any way. I am highly educated, a critical thinker and one of the leading Ugandan human rights defenders. I understand that UBC is a public broadcaster which doesn’t belong to anybody but Ugandans. If Owana wants to host only regime praise singers, he should ask his party – the NRM to open a TV station where only regime sycophants will be hosted. And incidentally, if Owana was working for a private media house, I wouldn’t complain. I think I am even entitled to know how an unprofessional man like Owana got a job with a prestigious public broadcaster.
I am convinced that Owana doesn’t have the requisite credentials to host any programme with UBC and I will not in any way accept that he treats me as a subject in this country.
If this matter is not handled, I will take a petition to parliament but also petition the constitutional court. I strongly affirm that UBC belongs to the state not the regime. Accordingly, it should give equal airtime to opposing views. By the way, Owana should even withdraw the defamatory statements he made about me. Some of us have taken long to build a name and we cannot in any way accept to be abused on air by people whose intellectual ability is not clear.
As a media house UBC must know that freedom of expression is fundamental to building an informed citizenry but also UBC must not portray itself as a mouthpiece for the regime.
For God and my country!
VINCENT NUWAGABA
+256772843552

2 comments:

  1. The truth is owana who is also knowa as Tony Geofrey Muyinza did not go beyond S6 at Caltec Academy in 1983 and never made it beyond that. That apart, he has not sought to better his education credentials in any way, so when you talk about the level of education there you got it correct!! The guy is praise singer nothing else and as soon as the regime is tired of him he will be shown the exit

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  2. But one shouldn't forget that Experience is the best teacher, If he has got enuogh experience to do what it takes to qualify him as aproffessional journalist then why not give him an opportinity.

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