Government has restored social media services after it shut down the Internet 12th January 2021 to avoid violence during the elections period.
But even after the elections government kept social media services like WhatsApp and twitter off after what it called “well verified threats to the Country’s peace and stability arising from abuse of social media platforms.”
The Minister of Information and National Guidance, Ms. Judith Nabakooba said that even after the elections, some elements continued to disseminate fake news, threatening citizen’s lives and families. “This necessitated a continued shut down of certain elements of the Internet,” she explained .
“After consultation with the concerned parties and the evaluation of the threats, we have come to the conclusion that social media is fully restored with a few exceptions,” Nabakooba said in a statement she made to the public.
“We hope that the public will use the various platforms on the Internet with a sense of responsibility to guarantee harmonious coexistence in addition to ensuring the stability Uganda enjoys,” she said but hastened to warn the promoters of fakes news and those that threaten others online that the long arm of the law shall catch up with them.
However, Facebook one of the most popularly used social media platform in Uganda remains closed due to a dispute between government and its owners who pulled down hundreds of Ugandan accounts belonging to supporters of the ruling government during a heated elections season. Nabakooba although she didn’t give a time frame when the Facebook services shall be restored , she said that negotiations were ongoing
