14/7/2026
The Daily Monitor and NTV Uganda are unlikely to resume operations for several months as Tanzanian businessman Rostam Aziz awaits regulatory approval to complete his acquisition of a controlling stake in Nation Media Group (NMG), according to people familiar with discussions between the company’s owners and the Ugandan government.
The delay means commitments made by Aziz during talks with Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba this week cannot be implemented until he formally assumes control of the East African media company, the sources said.
At a meeting held at the Special Forces Command headquarters in Entebbe, Aziz told Kainerugaba that although he had agreed to acquire the majority stake from the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED), the transaction had not yet been completed.
Please, Sir, we don’t have control of NMG yet because the acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals by authorities in Kenya and Uganda,” Aziz told the meeting, according to two people briefed on the discussions.
The sources said Aziz assured the Ugandan authorities that his intention was to work constructively with the government.
So whatever happened, we are sorry. We don’t seek to be antagonistic and adversarial but partners in Uganda’s development,” he said, according to the sources.
Aziz, one of Tanzania’s most influential businessmen and politicians, is a former member of parliament and senior figure in the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), having previously served as the party’s treasurer and a member of its Central Committee.
In March, his company, Taarifa Ltd, an affiliate of the Tyifa Group, agreed to acquire AKFED’s 54.08% controlling stake in Nation Media Group, comprising about 92.6 million ordinary shares.
The acquisition would make Aziz the controlling shareholder of East and Central Africa’s largest independent media company, which publishes Kenya’s Daily Nation and Uganda’s Daily Monitor, and operates NTV stations in both countries.
