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Explain Dora's presence, Sata question Shikapwasha

Explain Dora's presence, Sata question Shikapwasha
Written by George Chellah
Saturday, May 23, 2009 7:53:12 AM

PATRIOTIC Front (PF) leader Michael Sata has said Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha must explain Dora Siliya's presence at the Zambia International Business Advisory Council (ZIBAC) meeting in Livingstone instead of questioning The Post's picture.

And Post legal counsel Sam Mujuda on Friday invited Lt Gen Shikapwasha to visit the institution and examine more pictures of President Rupiah Banda and Siliya.

Commenting on Lt Gen Shikapwasha's letter to The Post in which he accused the newspaper of doctoring a picture carried in Thursday's edition, Sata said there were serious questions that needed to be answered concerning former communications and transport minister Siliya's presence in Livingstone as opposed to discussing the picture.

"The question is was Dora in Livingstone or not? Did Dora attend that meeting or not? It's not a question of querying the picture but the presence of Dora at that meeting with the President," Sata said. "Shikapwasha must know that, this is a picture and not a graph so we can all clearly see it. I really don't know these days what Shikapwasha's problem is. The man must just prove that our dear lady was not at that meeting."

Sata said by questioning the authenticity of the picture, Lt Gen Shikapwasha was indirectly scandalizing President Banda.

"I don't know how Shikapwasha thinks. He has made a mistake to even talk about that picture because many people who did not look at it on Thursday or paid attention to it are now seriously looking for it. So that they see what Shikapwasha is complaining about," Sata said. "Shikapwasha is not with Rupiah Banda because by talking about that picture it's clear that his intention is to scandalize Rupiah. Like I said earlier even those didn't see the picture will start asking questions and begin looking for that picture. Shikapwasha didn't mean well on this picture."

And Mujuda, who is also Post deputy editor-in-chief and deputy managing director, dismissed Lt Gen Shikapwasha's allegations.

"We are in receipt of your letter of yesterday in which you are complaining about the picture we published in our edition of Thursday 21, 2009 showing President Rupiah Banda, Ms Dora Siliya among others," Mujuda noted in a letter to Lt Gen Shikapwasha dated May 22, 2009. "You complained that the picture was computer engineered. We have verified with the photojournalist who took the picture Mr Eddie Mwanaleza and he says the picture was published as it was taken and no one has tampered with it in any way. And Mr Mwanaleza says this is not the only picture he took featuring the President and Ms Siliya."

Mujuda said The Post had no reason to believe that the pictures were engineered in any way.

"We have no reason to suspect or believe the picture was doctored in any way and we therefore invite you and any experts at your disposal to come and examine the picture and other pictures in our possession and determine in which way they have been doctored," Mujuda stated.

On Thursday, Lt Gen Shikapwasha accused The Post of superimposing images on its Thursday edition's front-page picture where Siliya sat close to President Banda at the ZIBAC meeting in Livingstone.

Lt Gen Shikapwasha claimed in a letter addressed to Post managing director and editor-in-chief Fred M'membe that the sitting arrangement portrayed to the public in relation to the ZIBAC meeting in Livingstone on Wednesday had a motive behind it.

"I wish to bring to your attention government's displeasure and exception at your newspaper's use of a picture on the front page of your Thursday, 21st May, 2009 edition, of His Excellency the President in a deceptive manner. The picture is out of malicious motive because it does not portray the true situation," Lt Gen Shikapwasha stated. "While we may appreciate what technology has brought to both you in the media and other people, it would be wrong to abuse it just to satisfy personal agendas. Anybody or any photographer who was at that meeting would attest that your picture is just computer generated whereby the President is superimposed on a position he never took at the meeting, which is that of sitting next to former Minister of Communications and Transport, Ms Dora Siliya. One wonders what your motive was in generating such a picture."

Lt Gen Shikapwasha stated that government therefore demanded a reprint of the correct picture and an apology over the alleged use of an engineered picture.

Labels: DORA SILIYA, RONNIE SHIKAPWASHA, SATA, ZIBAC

posted by MrK @ 6:56 AM