BOU Stories: Police Orders Journalists to Reveal their Sources

Detectives of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (CID) demand that journalists who published photographs of alleged bank accounts and buildings said to belong to the Deputy Governor of Bank of Uganda, Louis Kasekende, reveal the source of the information they published.

The online journalists, three in number, include Andrew Irumba of Spy Uganda, Raymond Wamala of Spy Reports and its chief editor, Bob Atwine were on Friday last week summoned to appear at the CID headquarters in Kibuli, Kampala for questioning and statement recording over stories they published previously.

The three reportedly had their phones briefly confiscated on Friday. The journalists were released on Police bond and asked to report again on Monday (today).

Wamala says Police asked him to disclose the sources who revealed the alleged property of Louis Kasekende, and Justine Bagyenda, but he declined.

“The detectives wanted to know who gave us the information we published. We can’t do that because the law requires as to protect our sources,” he said, adding that “We can’t be compelled to disclose our sources except with the consent of court or by the source.”

Police says that they are investigating claims that the journalists published the stories with an intention to defame the bank officials in question.

It is alleged that between October 2018 and January 2019, the journalists published photographs of property owned by the bank officials as well as alleged exchange of money leading to the sale of Crane bank.

On Monday, the journalists who reported back to Kibuli remained stuck with no officer attending to them until about 4:pm when they were issued another state bond, requiring them to report every Monday starting February 18.