The Monitor Publications has agreed to pay sh300m for the defamation of President Yoweri Museveni about COVID-19.

Museveni had earlier remarked that the money awarded in damages would go to the National Resistance Movement (NRM).

The management of Monitor Publications also agreed to apologize to the President in its edition of April 6, 2023, saying the story they published was false.

In 2021, the President, through his lawyer, Edwin Karugire of K&K Advocates, sued Monitor Publications after the publication of a story claiming that the President secretly got a COVID-19 vaccine jab, a claim the President denied and dismissed as untrue.

Monitor Publications agreed to settle the case out of court and subsequently publish an apology to the President.

Also, the management agreed to pay damages for defaming the president. President Museveni, through his lawyers, argued that on February 23, 2021, Monitor Publications falsely and maliciously caused to be written, printed, and published an article titled,

“Museveni inner circle” secretly given COVID-19 jabs — US paper”.

Museveni’s lawyers further argued that the published article portrayed him as a dishonest person who has used his position as President of Uganda to secretly enable himself and people close to him to be vaccinated with the COVID-19 vaccine, months ahead of health workers and other vulnerable groups, which is false.

The lawyers also argued that the article was widely circulated, and President Museveni attached several people’s reactions extracted from the Daily Monitor’s social media platforms, including negative responses and insults directed at him, as part of his evidence in the case.

During the preliminary hearing, the presiding judge, Musa Ssekaana, had advised the parties to settle the case out of court, but Monitor Publications insisted on defending the case.

However, the publications later agreed to settle the suit out of court without going through a litigation process.

President Museveni’s lawyers had asked the court to issue a permanent injunction restraining Monitor Publications and their servants from publishing the defamatory words against him.