Pastor Robert Kayanja’s Channel 44 TV came under scrutiny before the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) on Tuesday, after lawyers representing Pastor Jackson Senyonga of Chritian Life Church challenged the accuracy of reports allegedly aired by the station regarding an ongoing criminal case where the Rubaga Miracle Centre Church pastor accuses nine young men of defamation and and spreading what Kayanja’s team describe as false accusations against him (that he sodomized and refused to pay them).
The second hearing, held at UCC headquarters in Bugolobi, centered on allegations that broadcasts aired on Top TV in March this year may have misrepresented court proceedings and testimony presented before the Mengo Chief Magistrates Court, a complaint allegedly filed by Pastor Kayanja, saying the broadcast bleached the UCC guidelines.
At the heart of the dispute is Criminal Case No. KLA-CO-605 of 2023, in which the accused persons are facing charges arising from allegations connected to claims that Kayanja sodomized them.
UCC launched investigations after later receiving complaints from the Ojambo & Ojambo Advocates lawyets, regarding broadcasts aired between March 19 and March 21, 2026, alleging that media coverage on Chanel 44, which circulated on several social media platforms distorted evidence presented in court, particularly testimony by police digital forensic expert Enock Kaneene.
During the hearing, Senyonga’s side sought to demonstrate that his commentary was rooted in evidence already discussed in court rather than fabricated claims as alleged by complainants.
To support that argument, a collection of audio recordings, text messages and video clips was presented and played on the screens in the UCC hall, material Ssenyonga’s defence team said had already featured in court proceedings and formed part of the material examined by forensic expert and witnesses.
The presentation formed a key part of Senyonga’s defence, with his lawyers arguing that commentary based on evidence already before court should not be characterised as misinformation.
However, the spotlight quickly shifted to Channel 44 broadcasts cited in the complaint. Lawyers challenging the station’s coverage played portions of a news bulletin allegedly aired on March 19 in which the news anchor alleged that court had found forensic evidence presented by Kaneene to be baseless and that certain audio recordings had been determined to be products of artificial intelligence (AI).
The lawyers from Ojambo & Ojambo Advocates argued that such conclusions had not been made by the court and that the broadcasts therefore risked misleading the public about the actual status of proceedings.
The decision to play the video of a news bulletin aired on Channel 44 on March 19th was arrived at after the lawyers representing Kayanja and Channel 44 denied that such content hadn’t been broadcasted that day.
