Daily Monitor, NTV ordered to pay sh185m to lawyer over use of his X opinion
“The act of altering, misquoting and distorting a copyrighted work in a manner that damages the reputation of the author, in my view, is not fair and thus the defendants have failed to establish their defence of fair use and practice."
The Commercial Division of the High Court in Kampala has ordered Daily Monitor newspaper, NTV and journalist Deogratious Wamala to jointly pay sh185m to city lawyer Silver Kayondo. (A collage of Daily Monitor and NTV logos/Courtesy)
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The Commercial Division of the High Court in Kampala has ordered Daily Monitor newspaper, NTV and journalist Deogratious Wamala to jointly pay sh185m to city lawyer Silver Kayondo over altering and use of an opinion which he posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account without his express permission.
In a judgement delivered on July 27, 2026, High Court Judge Dr Ginamia Melody Ngwatu said the publication not only infringed on Kayondo’s copyright as a digital content creator, but the reporter (Wamala) also inaccurately quoted his work, risking injuring his reputation, to which he is entitled to damages.
“The act of altering, misquoting and distorting a copyrighted work in a manner that damages the reputation of the author, in my view, is not fair and thus the defendants have failed to establish their defence of fair use and practice. Therefore, the above can only lead to the conclusion that the defendants have infringed the copyright of the plaintiff,” Justice Ngwatu ruled.
Justice Ngwatu has also ordered Daily Monitor and NTV, which are under the Nation Media Group, to publish an apology on their print and online platforms.
However, Daily Monitor and NTV were shut down by the Government on June 28, 2026, and according to ICT minister Justine Kasule Lumumba, high-level talks have been commenced regarding the media group’s operations before it is allowed to resume business.
Kayondo said on September 16, 2023, through a link shared by his colleague Derrick Ainebyona on the Western Lawyers’ Forum, a professional WhatsApp group with over 300 members, he discovered that Wamala had lifted his tweet/X-post dated August 10, 2023 titled, ‘World Bank-Uganda’ and published its version.
Court documents indicate that the media houses published the troublesome story in September 2023 following the suspension of funding after the enactment of the Anti-Homosexuality Act.
Kayondo argued that he had spent years building his reputation as a legal expert in international finance and had invested more than sh370 million ($100,000) in developing that expertise.
Kayondo argued that the media organisations had copied his work without seeking his permission, without paying him and while presenting altered words as though they had come directly from him.
Daily Monitor and NTV had denied liability, arguing that copyright could not exist in the impugned post because the statements were merely ideas and concepts rather than protected works.
The media houses maintained that the article amounted to fair use because it discussed an important public issue, acknowledged Kayondo as the source and was published for public education on a current economic matter.
They further argued that there was no restriction on reproducing the material from Kayondo’s social media accounts and that the publication actually enhanced his public profile rather than damaging it.
However, citing the Data Protection and Privacy Act, the judge disregarded the defence, saying the media organisations unlawfully processed Kayondo’s personal data.
Haruna Ssengendo, a media practitioner, argues that while he does not entirely agree with the ruling, it is an eye-opener for journalists to ensure accuracy in case they have used someone’s work.
“The judge has based her decision on alteration or misrepresentation to arrive at her decision. So, as media practitioners, we must ensure accuracy if we are to use someone’s work and, if possible, we should seek permission to use it,” Ssengendo said.