It has been almost two weeks since NTV organised the Presidential Debate, the second since 2016.
I tuned in and listened attentively for hours to what the five presidential candidates and the two moderators had to say.
My key takeaway from the debate is that for someone to say with certainty that what they know is true (save for axioms and suchlike), they must ask these simple but important questions:
First, how do I know what I know? Second, how sure am I that the sources of my information are credible?
Failing to perform this task means you may believe things that are downright false and, crucially, say them publicly, thereby unwittingly spreading misinformation.
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For journalists, performing this task, especially in the course of their work, cannot be overemphasised. The last thing they want to hear is someone saying: “That is not even true.”
And while getting facts right seems like a straightforward thing, it can be very challenging. It is part of the reason media outlets routinely publish corrections.
Getting facts right takes time. Sometimes you have to read—and reading, for many people, is not as easy as watching a TikTok video. Your brain has to work a little harder.
And when you have tight deadlines, checking or double checking something becomes even more difficult. Consequently, what some people do is to conclude that what they know is correct without proof.
The fact check this website published on December 11 about the false claims made by NTV’s Arnold Segawa during the Presidential Debate hammers my point home.
When Mr Segawa told National Unity Platform’s Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, aka Bobi Wine, that Uganda’s score on Transparent International’s global Corruption Perceptions Index is 35 and “terrible”, he thought he was right.
Viewers did not have any reason to doubt him. After all, Mr Segawa works in a profession that takes accuracy of fact extremely seriously. The presidential candidate who had to answer his question did not care about the veracity of the claim. He was more concerned about his answer. Would it make sense?
Yet if, prior to the debate, Mr Segawa had asked himself how he got to know that Uganda’s score is 35, he would have averted the gaffe.
Asking this question forces you to gafo: go and find out. If you gafo well, you get to the bottom of the truth. And that is what we did after hearing Mr Segawa’s claim. We went to the index and checked it thoroughly. In less than no time, we discovered that the claim he made was false.
Six reasons you should trust what you read on this website—and share it with confidence
1. Led by experience that travels well
Our founder and editorial director, Musaazi NAMITI, brings more than two decades of serious newsroom experience, including eight years as an editor at Al Jazeera in Doha, Qatar, and consulting for the African Development Bank, UN agencies and Globe Media Asia in Cambodia. His global exposure anchors OJ-UGANDA.COM in professional rigour and fairness—standards that too often slip in Uganda’s crowded media space.
2. We fact-check with scientific precision
Verification is NOT a box we tick; it is how we bring journalism to life. We confirm spellings, dates, figures, places—every detail that shapes a story. If a fact looks shaky, we pause and probe. Emotion does not lead us; evidence does.
3. We are a legal entity and are fully registered
OJ-UGANDA.COM is a company registered with the Uganda Registration Services Bureau. Our registration number is: 80034266163714
4. Radical transparency in how we work
We do not hide behind mystery. We show readers how information is gathered, verified and edited. You will always understand why we stand by a story—because we will let you in on the process.
5. Accountability you can see
When we err, we do not sweep it under the carpet/rug. Our corrections policy ensures every error is corrected immediately, with a clear note explaining what went wrong and what has been fixed. No quiet deletions. No half-truths.
6. Fair treatment for contributors
If you write for us, your ideas remain yours. We refine, not usurp. We share every edited version before publication, and we publish only work that is fact-based and mutually agreed upon. Your voice stays authentic—and honest.
🔴We run a clean, professional news site that prioritises editorial quality and draws readers’ attention to what matters.
The beauty with gafo is that when you challenge someone about what they are saying, you are on firm ground. It is one thing to say “I think you are wrong” and quite another to say “I know you are wrong because I just checked what you said”.
When, for example, Mr Segawa corrected candidate Frank Bulira that Kumasi is in Ghana, after he claimed it is in Nigeria, he knew how he got to know that fact. He knew he could not be proved wrong.
We all make mistakes, of course. But if, for example, you fumble a speech, that is not the same as saying that someone owns 12 farms when they have three. If you are a journalist, people are going to conclude you took trouble to verify the fact.
The moderators had weeks to research what they had to discuss with presidential candidates. If a moderator cites a figure, it follows that it is from a credible source. And let us face it: 35 and 26 are totally different.
🔴 Musaazi Namiti is the Founder and Editorial Director of OJ-UGANDA. He previously led the Africa Desk at Al Jazeera in Doha, Qatar, worked for Globe Media Asia in Cambodia and writes a widely read column for Uganda’s Sunday Monitor. His work has been quoted by The New York Times, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, Jeune Afrique, The Africa Report—not for playing it safe, but for saying what others will not.
