Uganda Issues Tax For People On Social Media

Uganda Issues Social Media Tax

Social Media, for better or worse, is clearly a major part of our lives today. With people sometimes having several accounts across the variety of providers it seems clear that we are able to communicate in a very unique way. While this has provided both good and bad points, the bottom line is that social media is here to stay.

With all of that in mind, the Ugandan government has decided to take a very bizarre stance. In a report via SkyNews, the government has implemented a tax for any citizen who uses social media!

No Online Representation Without Taxation!

Yes, you read that right. Right now, social media users in Uganda have to pay a tax for the privilege. The Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni, decided to implement the tax as he believes that the social media site does a lot of harm with gossip. As such, many are (probably correctly) seeing this as a major attack on free speech.

How Much Is The Tax?

Putting this into UK terms, the tax will costs its citizens about 4p a day. Therefore, over the year being a part of social media will cost you just under £15. Now, I am no expert in the Ugandan financial situation, but I understand that more than 80% of its residents earn less than the equivalent of a dollar a day. Therefore, in real terms, this tax over the year represents roughly 2 weeks wages for its citizens. If you were to base that on your own wages, that would be quite a lot of money.

What Do We Think?

The Ugandan President has been in power since 1986. You generally do not stay in power that long unless you are one of three things; an exceptionally effective leader, a tyrant or corrupt. Which category best suits this situation I wouldn’t care to guess. As above, I’m not a political expert on Uganda. When a President attempts to control the media though, it is rarely a good sign.

What do you think? – Let us know in the comments!