Mediasurgeon: Top five Ugandan PR scandals for April 2013

Mediasurgeon: Top five Ugandan PR scandals for April 2013

STATEMENT BY THE PUBLIC RELATIONS ASSOCIATION OF UGANDA ON THE ON-GOING IMPASSE BETWEEN UGANDA GOVERNMENT AND SOME MEDIA HOUSES

PRESS  RELEASE

27^TH May,2013

STATEMENT  BY  THE PUBLIC RELATIONS ASSOCIATION OF UGANDA ON THE ON-GOING  IMPASSE BETWEEN UGANDA GOVERNMENT AND SOME MEDIA HOUSES

The Public Relations Association of Uganda (PRAU) notes with concern the on-going tensions and continued siege of some media houses in the country notably:The Pepper Publications, The Monitor Publications, Dembe FM and KFM. 

The events leading to the closure and continued siege of these media houses by the Uganda Police Force have been well documented and need not to be reiterated here.

As the apex body of all Public Relations and Corporate Communications professionals in Uganda, PRAU enjoys a healthy and professional relationship with a broad spectrum of organizations in its ranks including the affected media houses and the Uganda Police among other Government Departments.

As such the current impasse is of great concern and one the Association membership is greatly disturbed about. Freedom of the press is enshrined in our Constitution. It is a fundamental right in any democratic dispensation and its violation can negatively impact the democratic space and have far reaching economic ramifications to the country if violated.

Uganda has been lauded for its vibrant and independent press within the region and beyond. This recognition has had its knock on benefits that has portrayed the country in positive light on the African continent and duly earned Uganda its place on the pedestal of progressive and democratic states in the World. Part of this credit belongs to the Government and people of Uganda.

It is therefore imperative that the Government upholds the fundamental rights of the press provided for under the Constitution of Uganda to ensure that this well deserved respect is not besmirched by the current and unproductive bickering which has caused undue paralysis, put the country under international spot-light risking to ruin Uganda’s enviable past achievements.

PRAU and its members therefore implores the Uganda Government and members of the Uganda Media to reach an amicable understanding that ensures professionalism and democratic principles enshrined in our Constitution are protected by all concerned and the current stand-off concluded to ensure that the affected media houses can return to their normal operations henceforth.

We believe this is possible and urge all the protagonists to respect and play by the rules expected of any democratic society. Where differences fester, these should be amicably resolved in the competent Courts of Uganda.

JOB ADVERT : HEALTHCARE ACCOUNTANT

HEALTHCARE ACCOUNTANT

AAR Health Services Group is the leading Health Maintenance Organization in East Africa. AAR provides Pre paid Health & Medical Services to its clients, medical services to the general public and is renowned for its state-of-the art and cutting edge facilities and services. The Healthcare Accountant will be responsible for Healthcare Financial Management.

 

 KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

 

·         Accounting for all Healthcare income

 

·         Cost of sales management

 

·         Preparing of HealthCare profit and Loss as well as Balance sheet and cash flow statement

 

·         Budget preparation and monitoring of Health care

 

·         Motivate, Coach and mentor all people reporting to you

 

·         Utilize CCC and ACCPAC software to ensure proper reporting and value for money

 

PERSON'S SPECIFICATIONS

 

·         University graduate

 

·         Possession of professional qualification such as CPA or ACCA

 

·         At least four years Experience in a highly dynamic environment.

 

·         Strong leadership and Analytical skills

 

·         Ability to work with various accounting software

 

·         Team player with pleasant personality

 

·         ICT Competency

 

 

 

Qualified candidates should send us comprehensive applications and up-to-date CVs, copies of certificates including daytime telephone numbers, by email or courier to the address below so as to reach us by 31st May 2013. Your application should include three referees, none of whom should be your relative and all of whom should have supervised you, taught you or known you through work. The referees' information should include day time telephone numbers and email addresses. Please note that only successful candidates will be contacted.

 

The Human Resources Manager

 AAR Health Services (U) Ltd

Plot 16A Elizabeth Avenue-Kololo

P.O.Box 6240 Kampala Uganda

Email: hr@aar.co.ug

Top five Ugandan PR scandals for April 2013

UMI directors thrown out   of office by court.

The High court threw out two directors of Uganda Management Institute (UMI) ,citing lack of requisite academic papers. Judge Elizabeth Musoke, of the Kampala Civil division, ruled that the appointment of Kasozi Mulindwa as Director Programmes and Student Affairs (DPSA) and that of Deo Lukonji Bbosa as Director Finance and Administration (DFA) was riddled with procedural impropriety. This   was a dent to the good image of institution which is known for teaching professionals in the country.

Kyambogo university tuition scandal

What started as a tuition crisis spilled into a strike which left at least one student injured. Students protested against blacklisted by the university administration for failure to pay tuition last academic year. Management alleged that the students forged documents such as receipts and examination cards to illegally sit exams. Police instituted a probe which revealed more rot at the ten year old university. There have been several arrests and interrogation of senior management staff in connection with the scandals at the institution.IGG picked interest in the case and started investigating. Kyambogo University has been a nursery bed for scandals for some time. This is beyond heated in-house wrangles. Chaos continuing to manifesto even after the Vice Chancellor, Prof Isaiah Ndiege is on forced leaved points to a deeper problem that needs urgent interventions. Kyambogo University was also in the media over poor sanitation.

President Museveni and his sack money

The two major Newspapers carried a picture of the Busoga Youth Forum chairperson, Mr Sanon Bwire, carrying a sack reportedly containing Shs250 million which President Museveni had donated to the group. The action was a fulfillment of presidential pledge but Critics argued that it was a manipulative move by the president. Social critics disagree with the action because it breeds a culture that only encourages laziness. The story showed Lack of goodwill on the side of government regarding its priorities. Some people are suffering because there are no drugs in health centres   and the government claims that there is no money. Pressure from the civil society upgraded this act to a crisis phase two. There were media reports that the youth in Sembabule District used the case to ask for their share as well. The act reflected President's lack of faith in systems that are meant to deliver services in the country. Museveni was also faulted by activists for not following the set-out procedures of fulfilling presidential pledges. The act was a bad PR stunt for the president though it was a good strategy to show continuity with NRM even beyond 2016. Money in a sack portrayed the disrespect for accountability and responsible spending. Some officials have since been arrested over embezzlement 0f part of the money that was donated to the youth.

Former minster Musumba and Igara East MP held over extortion in India.

Former regional minister Isaac Musumba and a businessman Yakuba Mathai were  arrested in India for allegedly trying to extort US$20 million from four directors of electronics giant Videocon. The crisis deepened when Musumba still possessed a diplomatic passport even when he was no longer a minister which dented Uganda's international image. Musumba and the colleagues claim that Videocon had invested in a mining business in Uganda in 2009, but the four directors suddenly wrapped up the business within six months, signed a memorandum of understanding with the partner and left the country, duping several investors.

Coca Cola sues Riham over trademark infringement

Coca Cola has sued Riham on allegations of trademark infringement. The suit [CS 213] filed on April 24  seeks for an injunction restricting Riham from further infringement on Coca Cola brand contents, and shelving all products on the market which are purportedly considered as infringements. The law suits impacts negatively on the reputation of Riham soda. Both brands Riham Cola and Coca Cola products are said to possess similarities in relation to brand colours, packaging, content, and names among others. The injunction also seeks to stop Riham from producing products that are confusingly similar to Coca Cola. Riham has since launched another product despite the law suit. The Riham Cola soda bottle has since gone through remodifictaion.

Conclusion

With bad news, the best move is to own up and apologise. The sooner the better. This gives you more control of media coverage, and lessened the sting of media.Come clean and get past it. Monitoring media for crises is very important. Companies should Review media for crises on a daily basis to plan for any latest developments and deal with them.

 

Ivan N Baliboola

PR and Social  media Evangelist.

nbaliboola@gmail.com

 

AAR Uganda shines at the ANNUAL FITNESS AND WORK OUT EVENT

AAR partnered with the Uganda National Work-out and Fitness Association (UNWAFA) to organise the 'Annual Fitness And Workout Event 'on Wednesday 1st May 2013. As a sponsor, AAR provided   free breast cancer screening, blood pressure check-ups, on site-stand-by ambulance, dietitian health talk sessions, and BMI measurements. Our counsellor Joy wamala also graced the occasion.Despite the fact that it was a rainy day, the event attracted over 300 participants.

Employee Wellness is something AAR Uganda does not take lightly. In November 2012, AAR Uganda started a staff Jogging club with weekly sessions. Staff members join for free. Participants are free to walk, jog ,and run. For over eight years, AAR Uganda has sponsored its staff to participate in various marathons.

'I fit in' was the catch phrase for the day which helps explains the gist of Body Mass Index (BMI) which is the relationship between height and weight. The event was a scale up initiative promoting health, nutrition, and fitness as a measure to curb the growing public health crisis of obesity and overweight in Uganda.

 Fifteen percent (15%) of all proceeds from the Annual Work out and Fitness Event will go towards helping the less privileged at Smiling Faces Uganda, an NGO that looks after women and children in poor states. Most of cases are as a result of diabetes and HIV-AIDS affected families, accident victims among others. UNWAFA is a non-profit making Association that serves the health and fitness club fraternity with a mandate of growing, protecting and promoting the health and fitness industry in Uganda through regular exercises and sports. All participants at the event walked away with a free work-out DVD.