Former Kawempe South Member of Parliament Bashir Kazibwe Mbaziira has returned to the airwaves after spending six years away from active broadcasting while pursuing a political career. His comeback brings him back to the media industry where he established himself as a prominent voice on politics and current affairs.
Mbaziira made his official return on September 6 after joining Beat FM, where he has taken up a new role as the host of the station’s Sunday current affairs programme, Alipoota Olutagajjo. The veteran broadcaster announced his return with excitement, saying that six years after putting down the microphone, he was back “bigger and better.”
Alipoota Olutagajjo will be broadcast every Sunday from midday to 2pm and will feature panel discussions covering a wide range of national issues. Politics, the economy and other matters affecting the lives of Ugandans will form part of the programme’s key areas of discussion.
The move marks a significant return to the profession that gave Mbaziira a national platform before he entered elective politics. His broadcasting career spans more than a decade, during which he worked with several radio stations, including Voice of Africa Radio, Pearl FM, Suubi FM and Bukedde FM, before making the transition to television.
At NBS Television, Mbaziira became recognised for his work as a current affairs presenter, hosting programmes such as One on One with Tamale Mirundi, Ensi n’Ebayo and The Eagle. Through these programmes, he regularly engaged politicians, public figures and other stakeholders on political and social issues affecting the country.
His influence in the journalism profession also extended beyond broadcasting. In September 2018, fellow journalists elected him president of the Uganda Journalists Association, where he defeated Daily Monitor photographer Abubaker Lubowa. He served as the association’s president during the 2018–2020 term. Mbaziira holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the Islamic University in Uganda and later undertook postgraduate studies in investigative journalism in Turkey.
The media platform he built over the years also played a major role in his political journey. Mbaziira left NBS Television in July 2020 as he prepared to contest for the Kawempe South parliamentary seat. He subsequently contested on the National Unity Platform ticket and defeated then-incumbent Mubarak Munyagwa of the Forum for Democratic Change in the 2021 general election.
Mbaziira later separated from NUP and joined Mathias Mpuuga’s Democratic Front in 2025. He chose not to contest for another parliamentary term in the 2026 general election, ending his five-year tenure in Parliament. His decision has now been followed by a return to the microphone, bringing the former legislator back to the media platform that helped shape his public career.
