Maravi

Ronnie manipulated media, says Lubinda

Ronnie manipulated media, says Lubinda
By Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Mon 04 June 2012, 06:59 CAT

GIVEN Lubinda says Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha was the pilot of the manipulation of the media during the MMD reign.

Commenting on Lt Gen Shikapwasha's statement that the media is worse under the Patriotic Front reign in terms of news coverage than it was during the MMD's, and that the ruling party's cadres were censoring the media, Lubinda said the former information minister should lie low and apologise for running down the media instead of insulting Zambians.

He said Lt Gen Shikapwasha was the worst-placed person to make such a statement.

"I would like to advise Reverend Shikapwasha to lie low and not to be unnecessarily provocative because he is bound to stir the hornet's nest and it is only he who runs the risk of being stung by the wasps," he said.

"In case Rev Shikapwasha thinks that the people don't have information, I want to ask him whether he wants to deny ever having uttered the words: 'it's not your mother's money that we shall use in case we are sued over Chanda Chimba' to pay legal fees and also compensate people who were being defamed, or does he want me to tell the world who he told those words? I am challenging him to deny that he said those words."

Lubinda, who is foreign affairs minister, said Lt Gen Shikapwasha was not only the architect but also the pilot of the manipulation of the media during the MMD rule.

He said Lt Gen Shikapwasha should be extremely embarrassed with himself.

Lubinda said during Lt Gen Shikapwasha's time, no-one from the opposition would be carried by the Times of Zambia, Zambia Daily Mail or ZNBC.

He said he was willing to be a witness when the Attorney General sues Lt Gen Shikapwasha over the legal fees in the Stand Up Zambia programmes.

He said Lt Gen Shikapwasha could celebrate now that he would not pay the surcharge levied against him by the Attorney General.

Lubinda advised Lt Gen Shikapwasha to preserve the little intelligence he had because by daring the PF, he ran the risk of being exposed to a point where even the little integrity that could allow him to go and stand on the pulpit would be taken away from him and that even people who were following him when he goes to church would stop following and listening to him as a member of the clergy.

"I would like him to spend time to do an introspective view of what he did to destroy the media in Zambia," said Lubinda.

Labels: GIVEN LUBINDA, MEDIA, RONNIE SHIKAPWASHA

posted by MrK @ 2:30 PM