Rick Ashaba, a former presenter at TOP TV has dragged Top media group that belongs to Pastor Jackson Ssenyonga and its general manager, Ronald Mubiru to the Commissioner Labor Relations and Productivity in the Gender, Labor and Social Development Ministry over unpaid salary arrears.
Ashaba told local news agency, URN that he decided to report Top media consortium when Pastor Ssenyonga and Mubiru chose to sack him for demanding his salary arrears worth over Shillings 5million for ten months. According to Ashaba, Pr. Ssenyonga and Mubiru have openly told him that he is wasting time to report them because nothing will change.
“I am not a very poor journalist but I want to fight for my rights and save other journalists from being exploited. Many of my colleagues have worked and left Top Media group cursing and some hate the journalism profession. This impunity must stop,” Ashaba said.
Ashaba also wants Top media group to pay him Shillings 3million for breach of contract and Shillings 500,000 in lieu of the notice. There is a November 15th, 2021 letter reference number MGLSD/LC/307/2021 signed by Hilda Nakagga on behalf of Commissioner Labour, Industrial Relations and Productivity summoning Mubiru to respond to the complaints.
In the summons, Nakagga notes that Top Media managers had earlier defied two arbitration notifications meetings scheduled for September 6 and October 13.
“Reference is made to our first and second notifications to you Ref MGLSD/LC.307/2021 dated 6th September 2021 and 13th October 2021 respectively, which were delivered to you by the hand of the counsel for the complainants. You have since not responded to our communication contrary to section 15 of the Employment Act, 2006,” Nakagga’s third summon reads in part.
Although Nakagga indicated that the purpose of summoning the Managing Director Christian Life Ministries Top media consortium Limited was to establish an agreeable position for both parties, the respondents have shown no interest in resolving the standoff.
“There is a need to carry out a mediation meeting to establish an agreeable position for both parties. You are required to attend in person and Endeavor to bring along with you any relevant documents related to the above complaint to help guide the discussion,” Nakagga states in the summons.
Mubiru declined to comment on the matter and instead referred our reporters to their legal officer Counsel Batabala who neither picked nor returned calls from our reporter. This is not the first time Pastor Ssenyonga is the media for the non-payment of his staff. Top media group owns a string of radio stations in different parts of the country.