The Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) on Monday switched off Point FM, a radio station owned by ruling party legislator, Theodore Ssekikubo, shortly before it was scheduled to host opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, better known as Bobi Wine.
It is alleged that the move was aimed at blocking the National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate from addressing his supporters in Mubende District, where he had been lined up for a live talk show that evening.
According to employees at the station, UCC officials stormed the premises and confiscated the transmitter, bringing broadcasts to an abrupt halt.
‘Whenever UCC plans to switch off a radio station, it usually sends a letter or notice in advance informing the management. But in this case, they didn’t send any notice. They just came, removed the transmitter, and left without saying anything,’ one of the employees, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisal, told Monitor.
However, a letter from UCC dated October 5, 2025, and addressed to Point FM’s Managing Director, directed the station to ‘cease and desist from broadcasting operations’ over its alleged failure to complete the licensing process.
The letter, referencing earlier correspondence dated September 24, 2024, December 12, 2024, March 28, 2025, and April 16, 2025, stated that the station had continued to operate without a valid broadcasting licence.
‘The Commission notes that despite all previous correspondence, Spear Point has to date either failed or refused to complete the licensing process and is, as such, operating without a licence, contrary to Section 21 of the Uganda Communications Act,’ the letter reads in part.
The Commission also cited a response from Spear Point Limited, Point FM’s parent company, dated April 10, 2025, in which the management requested a four-week extension to complete the licensing process.
But Point FM’s manager, Sam Balaba Magala, dismissed the Commission’s explanation as politically motivated.
‘Point FM was scheduled to host the NUP president yesterday evening. But when UCC learned that Robert Kyagulanyi was going to appear on our station, they immediately switched us off to stop him from speaking to the people of Mubende,’ Magala told Monitor on Tuesday.
He added that NUP had already paid for the talk show and that the station would now be forced to refund the money.
When contacted, UCC Executive Director Nyombi Thembo said the Commission acted within the law.
‘Point FM has not had a valid licence for a long time. We have written to them several times since last year about this matter,’ he said.
The shutdown has reignited fears among opposition groups and media watchers about shrinking space for dissenting voices in Uganda ahead of the January 2026 elections.
Bobi Wine is one of seven approved presidential contenders challenging long-time incumbent President Museveni next year, joined by figures such as Mugisha Muntu, Nathan Nandala Mafabi, Mubarak Munyagwa, Frank Bulira and Joseph Mabirizi.