Museveni says that social media is used to "lie", defend tax for access :: Kenya

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni defended the country's new social media tax. used such platforms to "lie", and squander the nation's strong currency on royalties paid to foreign-owned telecommunications companies.

In May, the Ugandan Parliament pbaded new tax laws that introduced a levy of 200 shillings ($ 0.05) per day for access to a range of online services.

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The platforms that have been identified by the country's revenue service for the tax include Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Google Hangouts, YouTube, Skype, Yahoo Messenger and well others.

The tax, levied by mobile Internet service providers since July 1, is about 20% of what typical Ugandan users pay for their mobile data plans.

In a statement on Twitter, Museveni described social media as a "luxury by those who entertain or those who are wicked … all moral reasons are in favor of this tax".

Ugandan social media users, he said, "were constantly giving money to foreign telephone companies by talking or even lying."

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Uganda's two largest telecommunications companies are owned by the South African group MTN Group and the Indian Bharti Airtel, while other small players are also predominantly foreign.

The tax has proved extremely unpopular with Ugandan mobile phone users, who claim that this is unfair and stifles freedom of expression.

"The tax is an absolute insult to Ugandans … we are already buying data that the government taxes, why should we still pay this money to the government to access these platforms?", Said Dickens Kamugisha, a charity organization based in Kampala. worker.

"And in any case, these are now essential channels of communication that people use to reach their loved ones, communicate with their friends, socialists and mobilize civic … the tax reflects the highest form of greed."

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This week, Amnesty International called on the government to abolish the tax, which it described as an attempt to stifle disguised dissent in a way to generate revenue. recipes. [L8N1TY4E3]

In power since 1986, Museveni, 73, is increasingly criticized by local and international advocacy groups who accuse him of using security forces to crack down on opposition and other reviews.

Last year's parliament, controlled by the ruling party, amended the country's constitution and removed a 75-year age limit for presidential candidates. The opposition claims that this decision has paved the way for him to become president for life.

In the past, officials have expressed anger over the use of social media to publish critical content to the government and some social media users have been the focus of criminal proceedings against them. [nL8N1IC7OE]

There has also been anger against a new tax on all transactions on Mobile Money, a popular platform widely used in Uganda and East Africa to pbad cash between individuals and pay cash. goods and services.

In the statement, Museveni said that there had been "miscommunication" and that the levy would be 0.5% of the value of the transactions, not 1% pbaded by the parliament.

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