Maravi

Don’t allow govt to regulate media - Fr Miha

Don’t allow govt to regulate media - Fr Miha
By Abigail Chaponda in Ndola
Mon 16 Nov. 2009, 04:00 CAT

MISSION Press director Fr Miha Drevensek has urged people not to allow the government to regulate the media as doing so will defeat the purpose of freedom of information, which provides checks and balances.

Speaking at a sensitisation meeting organised by Citizens Forum for stakeholders on the constitution-making process at Ndola's Cathedral of Christ the King on Saturday, Fr Miha said people should change their passive attitude and challenge some negative actions by the government.

“I am concerned about the sleeping attitude the Zambian people have on issues that affect their well-being. Our sleeping nature is what has caused some of the problems we are facing because we don't want to react,” he said. “People should protest against the government if it will regulate the media because that is the only way people will know about what's happening in Zambia and what government is doing.”

He wondered why the government wanted to silence the media through regulation when freedom of information created checks and balance in the governance system of any country.

"When we ask people to react, they don't want, but complain that they are suffering, that attitude is not good," he said.
He urged the Church to act as one like they did during the third term bid campaign.

He said there was need to pressurise the government to come up with the new constitution within the stipulated timeframe.

Fr Miha appealed to the Catholic Church to educate their communities and families on the happenings in Zambia so that they could appreciate and support the church when it criticises government.

And Citizens Forum programme coordinator Francis Chipasa said the extension of the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) by 10 months was a blow to the constitution-making process.

“The ten months extension does not mean ten continuous months like from January to October, it means that the NCC will run for another 303 days. The NCC does not convene when Parliament is sitting and weekends and public holidays are not part of the 303 days," he said.

"Taking into account the times Parliament sit in a year, it means that NCC will continue to do its business the whole of 2010 and will even go into 2011 election without finishing. The 10 months extension closes the door for holding a referendum because the 2000 census records are the ones that should be used to determine the numbers of eligible voters and it will expire next year and results of the 2010 census would not be ready before 2011 elections.”

Labels: MEDIA, MIHA DREVENSEK, REGULATION

posted by MrK @ 4:56 AM