Daily Monitor has admitted that a news story recently published about Buganda Kingdom was inaccurate, prompting the Editor to apologize to Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi.
On April 20, the news publication wrote a story titled: “How US Fallout with Mengo Froze Kasubi Tombs Fund.” But Mengo, through its Attorney General Christopher Bwanika, told Monitor Publications to apologize to the Kabaka and his officials within five days or be sued for libel.
With the US Embassy in Kampala punching holes in the story and the revelation that reporter James Kabengwa had used messaging network Whatsapp to threaten Mengo officials, Daily Monitor Management, after consulting its legal team led by James Nangwala, resolved to apologize to the Kabaka and pursue negotiations with Bwanika and other senior Kingdom officials to avoid an impending court process that might end up in billions of court awards in damages to Uganda’s most influential monarchy.
“Our story, ‘How US Fallout with Mengo Froze Kasubi Tombs Fund,’ on Monday April 20, 2020, contained inaccuracies. The correct amount offered by the US Embassy was $5,000 and not $250,000 as was reported. There was also no fallout between Mengo and the US Embassy. The money was meant for the erection of an information board. It wasn’t used in the specific time-frame and was refunded hence accounted for,” wrote Monitor’s Editor in an apology published by the newspaper.
“We sincerely apologise to His Majesty the Kabaka, the Katikkiro and to the Buganda Kingdom officials for any inconvenience caused by our misreporting.”
Credit: mulengeranews.com
