Tamale Mirundi loves to call himself a brave, no nonsense man. However on Monday afternoon, before an audience of over 200,000 fans, the presidential advisor on media chickened out. He was a no show for an online show with fans waiting on all continents. From US, Europe, Asia, Middle East, Australia, and here in Africa, across time zones, fans were posting on the live page asking “what had happened to Tamale”.
Some blamed the poor time keeping culture in Africa as a bug that has stung Mirundi.
Finally it emerged he had chickened out of his biggest online audience, he could have got.
Thw online show on Frank M Gashumba page, was publicized as ‘fire and fury’, and Mirundi himself advertised it with Frank Gashumba in a video teaser.
Fans tuned in at 3pm on Monday, waited for Tamale and Gashumba duo to stage their Frontline, but only the Sisimuka chief, showed up.
Fans were visibly disappointed.
Gashumba apologized to his fans that the show didn’t come through as promised but promised to return it better. He played pro Ugandan songs for more than an hour.
One fan, wrote in, “Please don’t give up on the show, build it around Frank Gashumba not any other person (Tamale Mirundi), the intro was superb, the screening was good. The viewership was good.
He added, “You are a big brand, informed, articulate and intelligent. Let all questions be directed to you, please don’t tell people that most of the questions were directed to your guest.”
Many fans continued pouring in their admiration for The Frank Gashumba show, and instead, jumped on Tamale Mirundi who they accuses of cowardice.
Gashumba is one of the most followed people in Uganda. The numbers that tune in such online shows prove digital media has come of age in Uganda.
Other lamented that “the mafia” could have paid him off like Bad Black.
Tamale Mirundi last week exited NBS TV where he had a Tuesday morning show. He blamed Kin Kalisa for accepting to be used by mafias to frustrate his show.
Mirundi had been asked by NBS owner, Kalisa, to stop his attacks on some individuals. Mirundi equated the proposal to a betrayal of his values. He said he was going to turn to online for his popular shows, and indeed did some shows.
However, Gashumba’s show was going to be the biggest.
With over 230,000 tuning in, possibly this was set to be Mirundi’s biggest audience at a single time.
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