The court in Kampala has sentenced 20-year-old Senior Six student Edison Ssemugenyi to six months in prison for spreading false information about President Yoweri Museveni and Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba on TikTok.
According to prosecutors, Ssemugenyi used his TikTok account to publish false claims that President Museveni was bedridden. The court also heard that he posted hate speech targeting Gen. Muhoozi, alleging that the CDF is homosexual.
Ssemugenyi was arrested last month shortly after completing only two of his Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) examinations.
On Tuesday, he pleaded guilty to the two charges of spreading false information and hate speech, and was consequently remanded to Luzira Prison to serve his six-month sentence.
He, however, denied a separate charge of posting a video accusing President Museveni of being a thief. That matter remains before the court.
