Zambia is a failed State – Siakalima
Monday, November 1, 2010, 13:27
The United Party for National Development has charged that Zambia under the leadership of president Rupiah Banda is a clear confirmation of a failed State. UNPD presidential spokesperson Douglas Siakalima observes that the continued happenings in the country are quiet frustrating.
He says it is unfortunate that the MMD government wants to use certain State wings to influence their leadership. Mr. Siakalima in an interview with QFM states that it is high time the Zambian people realized that they are being led by a failed government.
He adds that it is also high time that the people of Zambia resolved to put in place a more organized government in place come 2011.
[Qfm]
Labels: DOUGLAS SYAKALIMA, MMD, QFM, RUPIAH BANDA
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Mabenga loses temper on live phone-in programme
By Agness Changala
Sun 07 Feb. 2010, 06:50 CAT
MMD chairman Michael Mabenga on Thursday lost his temper and labeled one of the caller’s contributions “stupid” and “foolish” when he featured on Q FM. During a live phone-in programme dubbed Public’s Last Say, the caller identified as Muchindu opted to call Mabenga Mr Constituency Development Fund (CDF).
In response to Muchindu, Mabenga, who is also lands deputy minister, angrily asked Muchindu to explain what he meant by calling him Mr CDF. “What do you mean Mr CDF?” Mabenga asked.
“You ate the money for Mulobezi,” replied Muchindu.
Mabenga said it was very foolish of Muchindu because he did not even know what he was talking about.
“If I am able to get you there, I am going to get you and you will get arrested for that. That’s very silly of you, I must say,” he said.
Mabenga said when people attacked him in a stupid and foolish manner, he would defend himself from such attacks.
“You see when you have people speaking stupid like this; I must be able to defend myself because he has no evidence at all. He has no evidence,” he said.
Mabenga threatened to take Muchindu to court if he talked about corruption allegations without evidence and asked him not to open what he called new routes.
“I was not found guilty. I should have gone to prison, which prison did I go to? Nothing like that happened, and that’s why I am saying don’t talk about empty things,” he said.
Mabenga told the caller to just complain about the drainage like he earlier started.
He urged Muchindu to be objective and talk about things that were meaningful.
“You see, we know you are the same people who call almost all radio stations and people understand you. We know you but let us speak things that are objective, then we will be able to answer you,” Mabenga said.
And a sympathiser of the MMD advised Mabenga to appreciate what people were saying about his party.
He said the government must attend to people’s needs because that was what people needed at the moment.
“What people need at this moment is food, mealie meal prices are rising by the day so as a government, what are you going to do about it? Try and sit down on the table, what are we doing?” the sympathiser said.
Earlier, Mabenga said the MMD government was trying hard to ensure that employment was created for the people of Zambia.
He said the government was also encouraging more investors to come to Zambia.
“Each time you see the President going out, he tries as much as possible to woo investors to come to our country, to come and work together with us in Zambia here,” he said.
Mabenga said it may take a bit of time but the government was convinced that it was there and the employment opportunities were being provided.
He said the mines would be opened in some provinces and employment would come forth.
On concerns that the government had failed to address drainage problems in Lusaka, Mabenga said the government should not be blamed because there were members of parliament and councillors in charge.
Mabenga advised the public to go to Lusaka Province minister Charles Shawa to get a yellow book and see what had been allocated to the province for such works.
Mabenga said the government had responded by giving provinces resources that should cater for their needs.
Labels: CDF, MICHAEL MABENGA, QFM
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Kunda threatens to sue QFM
By Chibaula Silwamba
Fri 29 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT
VICE-President George Kunda's law firm has threatened to sue Lusaka's Radio QFM over the live broadcast of Patriotic Front (PF) Michael Sata's letter in which the latter claimed that the Vice-President irregularly received K3.5 billion legal costs from government.
And QFM director Moses Nyama yesterday confirmed receipt of the letter from George Kunda and Company. In a letter dated January 25, 2010, accessed by The Post, George Kunda and Company demanded that QFM pay reasonable sum as damages.
“Re: Claim for damages for malicious libel - George Kunda and Company, and Mrs Irene M. Kunda. It has been brought to our attention that on 18th January, 2010 your radio station carried an interview with the Patriotic Front president Mr Michael C. Sata where among other things, he alleged that George Kunda and Company had received a sum of K3.5 billion as costs from the government, in the case of DBZ Vs. Sun Pharmaceuticals Limited when the court had ordered that each party should bear its own costs, and that this is tantamount to theft and/or plunder of public funds,” George Kunda and Company stated.
The firm stated that QFM repeated Sata's interview.
“These allegations are completely untrue and constitute a grave libel upon the firm and its proprietor Mrs Irene M. Kunda. The publication has lowered the professional standing of the firm and its proprietors,” the firm stated.
“We therefore demand that: - (1) You render a suitable withdrawal and apology in terms to be approved by us in respect of these unfounded allegations which were broadcast on your radio station, (2) You give us your assurance and undertaking in writing that you will not repeat the broadcasting or publication of these or similar allegations concerning the firm, and its proprietors. (3) You indemnity the firm and its proprietors in respect of legal costs which they will have incurred in this matter. (4) You pay a proper and reasonable sum as damages to the firm and its proprietors for the injury to their reputation and the embarrassment and distress caused to them.
The amount payable will be communicated to you in due course.”
George Kunda and Company stated that QFM acted recklessly by allowing Sata to make the libelous remarks with impunity.
“We shall issue a Writ of Summons if we do not receive a satisfactory reply within the next seven days,” stated George Kunda and Company.
When contacted, Nyama confirmed that QFM had received the letter and would respond to it.
“We received it and we are going to respond to it. We will respond maybe today yesterday,” said Nyama.
Labels: GEORGE KUNDA, MOSES NYAMA, QFM, SATA
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We won't be intimidated, declares Q-FM MD
By Chibaula Silwamba and Inonge Noyoo
Monday September 22, 2008 [04:00]
LUSAKA’s Radio Q-FM managing director Asan Nyama has declared that the station will not be intimidated by information and broadcasting services permanent secretary Emmanuel Nyirenda. And Nyama announced that the radio station will resume its phone-in Presidential By-election 2008 Talk Show programme at 18:30 hours this evening.
Reacting to Nyirenda's directive to Q-FM to buy equipment to screen telephone calls before they are broadcast during its phone-in programmes, Nyama hoped Nyirenda would allow the private radio station to contribute to Zambia's young democracy by allowing it to do its work without interference.
"This is not the first time that Mr Nyirenda has tried to gag us. During the 2006 presidential and parliamentary elections, we were visited by police for using our outside broadcast unit. Radio Q-FM like all media organisations is a partner and stakeholder in this political process although we are non-partisan," explained Nyama in a media statement issued in Lusaka yesterday. "We shall not be intimidated by permanent secretary Nyirenda as we believe we are allowing freedom of expression. Our presenters are trained to fade away a caller who starts attacking others who are not on the show to defend themselves."
He noted that since Q-FM started using its state-of-the-art outside broadcast unit, Nyirenda has been very uncomfortable with the radio station.
"But we can assure him that we are neutral in all our broadcasts and cover all stakeholders equitably. We believe the statement issued by Mr Nyirenda was targeted at us as he has been very personal with most of our issues relating to the station's coverage area and use of the outside broadcast platform," Nyama observed.
He said after extensive consultations with the technical department, it was concluded that there was no special equipment that radio or television stations could use to screen what a caller would say.
"Therefore, Radio Q-FM will on Monday September 22, 2008 at 18:30 hours resume its Presidential By-election 2008 Talk Show that was suspended last Friday September 19, 2008," he stated.
He assured Nyirenda that Q-FM would conduct the programme with impartiality, professionalism and in unbiased manner.
Nyama stated that Q-FM was amazed that whilst the world had advanced in use of broadcast technology, Nyirenda was antagonistic with such modern technological trends in Zambia.
"We wonder why it should take days to learn what is happening in rural Zambia relating to development especially when our own president travels there but when US President George Bush speaks in Washington the whole world listens within split of seconds," observed Nyama. "We have acquired modern equipment which can cover all developmental activities in far flung areas like Kaputa, Shang'ombo, Chipata and Kasempa in real time as events happen."
And regular callers to the suspended QFM live phone-in programme expressed displeasure with Nyirenda's directive to use special technology to screen calls before they are broadcast.
The callers, who stormed The Post offices yesterday, said the move to suspend the programme was retrogressive and aimed at muzzling the press.
Imbuwa Imbuwa said Nyirenda had clearly demonstrated that he was not adding value to the advancement of freedom of expression in the country.
"We call these radio stations using our money and there is no way a PS should suggest what we should be saying.
We are a population of 13 million plus and we must not be dictated to as what we should say. It is us to tell these people what we want and not the other way round," Imbuwa said. "The next thing we will hear is that we should stop writing letters to the editor. This is very annoying and he Nyirenda should resign, let him quit."
Another caller Konoso said it was sad that under the leadership of Vice-President Rupiah Banda, dictatorial trends were slowly emerging.
"It's very strange because our late president Levy Mwanawasa was usually attacked through phone-in programmes but never banned them.
Is it a mere coincidence that when Rupiah Banda who is coming from the dictatorial era of the UNIP days where dictatorship was practiced is Acting President and such statements are coming out? If this is the case, then what more if he becomes president?" he asked.
Konoso said he could foresee a situation where the private media would be totally muzzled.
"This is why I am opposed to the regulation of the media because it will bring infringement. This nonsense should not be allowed because the media can regulate itself, they are already rules in place," he said.
Another caller, Chanda Fambo, said in this day and age, broadcasting should be interactive.
"We were condemning Robert Mugabe that he is a dictator, this is how dictatorship starts. It starts by muzzling the press. There is no greater freedom than the freedom of expression," he said.
Fambo said Nyirenda should be concerned with providing more platforms for people to express themselves because that was the only way people's concerns would be noted.
McDavid Sianjunza, who said screening calls infringed on people's rights, wondered how the government would listen to people's concerns when they were not allowed to express themselves especially in an election period.
"We know that Mulongoti is Rupiah Banda's campaign manager. Should we take it that he is the one behind the directive?" asked Sianjunza.
Labels: ASAN NYAMA, EMMANUEL NYIRENDA, MEDIA, QFM
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QFM suspends live phone-in programme
By Chibaula Silwamba
Sunday September 21, 2008 [04:00]
LUSAKA'S Radio QFM has suspended its popular live phone-in programme following information and broadcasting services Permanent Secretary Emmanuel Nyirenda's directive to use special technology to screen calls before they are broadcast.
But Nyirenda said he did not direct QFM to buy special equipment for monitoring calls, but offered management timely advice to refrain from using phone-ins over which they have no control on what the caller would say.
A QFM announcer on Friday evening announced: "We apologise, we are unable to conduct our usual interview. This is a directive by information and broadcasting services permanent secretary Mr Emmanuel Nyirenda to handle phone in programmes with the use of special technology to facilitate the screening of calls.
"Mr Nyirenda has observed that some radio stations have political programmes which provide unbalanced and in some cases unfair coverage to political parties.
Until some of the issues raised are addressed, the 18:30 live QFM programme will be suspended and the QFM management would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused."
But when contacted yesterday, Nyirenda said he did not call upon QFM to use any equipment.
"I have simply warned that in an election period, when you have these live programmes and people phone in, you stand a danger of people making insults and defamatory statements for which you have no means to get the other party to respond and I am advising them that it will be best for them in this period to refrain from using phone-ins which they have no control," Nyirenda explained.
"It's an appeal and not a directive. It's timely advice which goes to people operating radio stations. It does not side with anyone, whether ruling party or opposition; anybody can defame the other during phone-in programmes. But if they go ahead and end up in trouble over defamation, at least we will have warned them in advance."
He said he was not asking QFM to buy equipment to screen calls but only observed that with such equipment, it would be much easier to control phone calls.
Nyirenda said no one should perceive his advice to QFM as a directive meant to stifle the radio station from carrying out its operations independently.
"They want to make it look like...because it's an election, I am trying to prevent them. No!" said Nyirenda. "I am just advising them that these things they ought to be careful about and the need for them to be balanced because you know you have a situation where you are talking on an economic issue and then somebody phones in and starts attacking somebody else over a totally different subject. That person who is being attacked is not on the live programme and has no means to respond."
QFM's special evening interview, which has been running for about a week now, has featured several politicians such as Vernon Mwaanga, MMD spokesperson Benny Tetamashimba, MMD founding member Akashambatwa Mbikusita-Lewanika and UPND presidential candidate Hakainde Hichilema, who have been 'grilled' by callers.
The callers have been forthright in demanding honest answers from politicians ahead of the October 30 presidential elections, in which Hichilema, MMD's Rupiah Banda and Patriotic Front leader Michael Sata are contenders.
Labels: EMMANUEL NYIRENDA, QFM, RADIO
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