There is now a leaked draft list of people circulating online, where there are known people who will be working for the President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni. Whose job is spin the news and ensure the agenda is spread as he wishes, as the Minister of ICT and Communications Frank Tumbewaze and the Uganda Media Centre Ofwono Opondo cannot handle themselves, that is why more people are put on board.
There are certain individuals who are hired to directly spread their “news” on Twitter, WhatsApp, Facebook and so on. There is even one man hired to run the GCIC, which is Simon Peter Olara, who will spread the handpicked messages there. The man on conventional social media like Facebook and Twitter, who will manage that is Herbert Anderson. On Twitter there are 11 persons who is working there directly, there will be one in-charge of Diaspora and International Media Monitoring, he is Ibrahim Bagaya Kisubi. Radios and TV part of the team are Augustine Otuko. You have a Content Development made by Hussain Hudu. However, the Manager of this team is Duncan Abigaba.
What is important about the Manager of this Media Team, Duncan Abigaba is the Ex-Presidential Assistant-Research & Information. Therefore, he is a loyalist of the President and will make sure the Team is up to dropping the “knowledge” they need. He is a former leader within the NRM Youth League (NRM-YL) as well. So, he has been a voice from within. Abigaba has been until recently, the manager of the Government Citizen Interaction Centre (GCIC). This man has really been in the midst’s of government agenda and spin, as they want.
So, when he becomes the manager of this team, that is partly hiring someone to handle the GCIC and getting the previous Presidential Assistant – Research and Information, are now making a Media Team to spin the news on the Social Media. The place where the President says it is all rumors and gossip. But clearly the President knows the importance of controlling the conservation and spread his message. That is why the state already controls the Vision Group and Uganda Broadcasting Company (UBC). This wouldn’t matter, if the President didn’t want set the agenda and not have the media looking into the facts.
This is to secure his message using a loyal man Abigaba to do this. The former leader of GCIC and NRM Youth League will ensure the message of the government is massaged to the masses. That is the clear message by the state, as they want to steer it and try to spin the news. As the need so many people as part of the Twitter Team, also the leadership of every single Social Media Page like WhatsApp and Facebook, and also Monitor the Diaspora or International Media.
Abigaba will really show his force and his ability as loyalist of the President. We will see if he can put this people up to speed, some calls this a micro-troll-farm for the President. That might be true, but if they will bring news like the GCIC handle, it will be super positive spin who is favor of the President. They will not generate facts and make sure the NRM looks like the golden goose of the world and at large. Peace.
MinBane 