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| National |
| Public watchdog calls for law against media bias |
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by
Gedion Munthali and Zainah Liwanda, 27 April 2005
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13:31:55
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Public Affairs Committee (Pac) has advised MCP and UDF not to connive to block budgets of public broadcasters, but to use their numerical superiority in the National Assembly to push for legislation that will free TVM and MBC from political control.
Pac chair Boniface Tamani said on Tuesday blocking the budget was callous as it would not directly affect President Bingu wa Mutharika’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which is allegedly being favoured, but innocent staff as well as people who benefit from programmes which have nothing to do with the party.
“I thought they are boasting of numerical superiority, let them just amend the law that will make state media independent of political interference,” argued Tamani. “Blocking the budget is a short-term solution and also a sign of insensitivity to the total implications of their intended action.”
Without defending the alleged bias towards the DPP, Tamani said what is happening should serve as a lesson to UDF which he accused of presiding over the “worst bias by the two institutions in democratic Malawi”.
“The lesson is that one must not only complain or protest when you are not the beneficiary of the situation. UDF had all the opportunity to make the institutions independent, through the Communications Act as proposed by the Law Commission, but they doctored it to suit their own purposes,” said Tamani.
He accused political parties of always avoiding to legislate for the independence of the public media, hoping that when in power they would also use them for their own good.
MCP and UDF supported Tamani’s proposal to legislate against political control of TVM and MBC, but differed in commitment.
MCP deputy publicity secretary Bintony Kutsaira said his party will consider pushing for such legislation through the parliamentary committee on media and communication.
“The idea to legislate against political interference is a good one. MCP will take initiative to push for the formulation of a bill through the media committee to make the institutions fully independent,” said Kutsaira.
But he disagreed with Tamani that parties are reluctant to make state media fully accountable to the tax payer, saying his party was one of those that fought in the National Assembly that proposals of the law commission in the Communications Act should not be changed.
“Unfortunately we did not have the voting power, that is why the UDF got away with it,” Kutsaira.
UDF spokesman Sam Mpasu said legislating against bias was a good idea, but doubted its feasibility given that opposition parties do not have enough resources.
“It is government, presiding over such bias, which has all the resources,” lamented Mpasu.
He argued that parties are not reluctant but feel helpless to discipline the public media through legislation.
“All the time the aggrieved parties are in the opposition, and unfortunately they mostly have no voting power. That is why they become helpless, and give an impression of reluctance,” said Mpasu.
Meanwhile, Information and Tourism minister Ken Lipenga has dismissed threats by MCP and UDF to block budgets for the two media houses, saying there is no justification for their threats.
Speaking on arrival at Kamuzu International Airport on Tuesday, from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates where he attended a government leaders forum, Lipenga said the new administration has striven hard to ensure that the opposition is heard, adding that it is a continuous process from the previous regime.
He said on many occasions opposition parties and leaders have been covered by Television Malawi and MBC, expressing dissenting views to those of government, an indication that there is liberalisation of the air waves.
“There is absolutely no justification for the opposition to say MBC and TVM budgets would be blocked, because they are doing their best. During the MCP era, Malawians were not allowed to hear dissenting views. The official duty of the Minister of Information during Kamuzu’s era was to make sure that Malawians stay in the dark,” said Lipenga.
He said if the opposition has any complaints about the two institutions, the best way is dialogue and not archaic ways such as threats.
The Consumers Association of Malawi (Cama) also dismissed threats by the MCP and UDF to block budgets for the MBC and TVM saying the two parties’ regimes were worse than the present.
Cama executive director John Kapito said in an interview yesterday that while its important for the public broadcasters to be free from political manipulation, he said UDF spokesman Sam Mpasu would be the last to condemn MBC and TVM.
He said during his tenure as information minister, Mpasu ensured that dissenting views to government were not aired on MBC, adding that he was once given back his K500,000 for a Cama awareness programme by Mpasu because the views were not in line with UDF.
“We agree that the public broadcasters should be free from political influence but I expected Mpasu to be the last person to complain because his reign as Information Minister was the worst,” said Kapito.
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