🔊 Cybercrimes will land you in jail, UCC chief Tembo tells content creators

KAMPALA - Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) executive director Nyombi Thembo has warned content creators against cybercrimes.

According to Tembo, some digital creators tend to abuse people and state actors, warning them to stop the habit because it is against the law.

The warning comes barely a week after the Chief Magistrate’s Court in Nakawa, Kampala city, sentenced a Senior Six student to six years in prison for spreading false and malicious information about President Yoweri Museveni and Uganda army Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba.

The 20-year-old Edison Ssemugenyi sent falsified text messages to various individuals announcing the alleged death of President Yoweri Museveni and further claimed that Chief of Defence Forces Muhoozi was involved in a same-sex relationship.

On Tuesday, December 9, 2025, Chief Magistrate Esther Nyadoi convicted and sentenced Ssemugenyi after he pleaded guilty to two counts of malicious information.

He was battling the charges under Section 28 of the Computer Misuse Act.

Nyombi issued the warning on December 11, 2025, while officiating at the Ongea Digital Creators Summit, organised by Stanbic Bank in partnership with UCC and the Uganda Digital Society, to strengthen the country's growing digital economy.

Nyombi Thembo praised the concept, noting that the summit aligns with the National digital transformation goals.

The managing director of Stanbic Bank, Mumba Karifungwa, said they are working towards supporting content creators through different interventions to ensure they work as businesses.

The president of Uganda Digital Society, John Senkeezi, highlighted the challenges faced by digital creators, including high Internet costs and poor network, calling for solutions from the regulator, Uganda Communications Commission.