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Uganda tabloid claims Gay Star News helped ‘pro-gay’ presidential candidate to raise $1 billion
A Ugandan tabloid has claimed Gay Star News has helped a ‘pro-gay’ presidential candidate to raise $1 billion for his campaign.
This, of course, is not true.
The Red Pepper, famous for publishing the names, faces and addresses of gay people and addresses, on their front page today claimed UK and US backers have offered former Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi money in exchange for him pushing rights for LGBTI people.
Their headline was: ‘Mbabazi Funders Named: USA, UK Gay Tycoons Give Amama SHS3.5TN’
‘Our highly placed sources have intimated to us that Mbabazi enjoys a very healthy relationship with the gay community who view him as their beacon of hope as regards advancing their interests and/or rights in Uganda,’ they wrote.
‘The gays are doing anything possible to ensure that Mbabazi achieves his presidential dream.’
They add: ‘The source added that following a series of briefings, the gay community offered Mbabazi a whopping $1 billion (about 3.5 trillion Ugandan shillings) to facilitate his campaign for the 2016 General Elections.’
While we cannot confirm how much Mbabazi has raised for his campaign so far, activists say this amount of money is ludicrous. To compare, Barack Obama raised $750 million for his campaign in 2008. This eclipsed the total amount of money raised by all of the US presidential candidates combined in 2004.
Last month, GSN reported on Mbabazi’s campaign where he said he was ‘opposed to homophobia’. Our headline was: ‘For the first time in history, a Ugandan presidential candidate backs gay rights‘.
Speaking on NDS Television, Mbabazi had said: ‘I am opposed to homophobia. While I believe marriage is between a man and a woman, homosexuality is not something new.
‘I have stated very clearly that there shouldn’t be any discrimination and it is not the biggest threat right now in the country.’
GSN spoke to Edwin Sesange, the director of Africa’s LGBTI Out and Proud Diamond group, who called it a ‘historic moment’. His quote, as well as several edited portions of the article, appeared in the newspaper.
None of the so called ‘gay tycoons’ are named.
Gay Star News was not contacted by any Red Pepper journalist.When we contacted the paper ourselves, we couldn’t reach anyone who would give us a quote.
Mbabazi has yet to comment on the report.
Speaking to us again today, Sesange said: ‘This is wrong for the Red Pepper to claim. I have personally never met Amama Mbabazi in my life and I’m not sure if he has ever met any gay person in the UK privately for a meeting.
‘He has expressed a different opinion from that of the government and other opinion. He wants to stop blaming gay people for everything and concentrate on actual problems.’
He added: ‘It is unbecoming for the Ugandan media to use persecuted LGBTI people and activists in an attempt to condemn and spread lies about any person, politician or otherwise.’
Mbabazi was the prime minister before he was sacked by President Yoweri Museveni. In July, when attempting to hold a political meeting, he was arrested by police for doing it without ‘permission’. His daughter was also arrested with no charges brought against her. They were both subsequently released.
The post Uganda tabloid claims Gay Star News helped ‘pro-gay’ presidential candidate to raise $1 billion appeared first on Gay Star News.
Joe Morgan
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