(MISA/IFEX) – The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) has banned a civic organisation’s live programme from being aired arguing that the programme did not follow the corporation’s commissioning procedures as editorial responsibility is vested in the public broadcaster, “The Herald” and “The Daily News” reported on 6 June 2001. The weekly programme, “Talk to the Nation” […]
(MISA/IFEX) – The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) has banned a civic organisation’s live programme from being aired arguing that the programme did not follow the corporation’s commissioning procedures as editorial responsibility is vested in the public broadcaster, “The Herald” and “The Daily News” reported on 6 June 2001.
The weekly programme, “Talk to the Nation” was launched on 17 May, by the National Development Assembly (NDA), a civic group largely made up of black business persons, championing what has come to be called the indigenisation of the economy.
In a letter to the NDA (quoted by “The Herald”), ZBC Programme Head Musi Khumalo said that ZBC had taken a policy decision and had withdrawn the programme from its production and transmission. The ZBC letter reads, “This letter serves to advise that the live TV discussion programme, ‘Talk to the Nation’, sponsored by your organisation has been withdrawn from ZBC production, transmission and broadcasting service with immediate effect. The last programme was the one broadcast on Thursday May 31, 2001.The decision has been taken on policy grounds.”
“The Herald” reports that the ZBC had erred in commissioning a live programme to a civic group as editorial responsibility is vested in the public broadcaster according to the new Broadcasting Services Act. “The Herald” also reports that during the one hour NDA live programme, ZBC production employees ceased to work for the public broadcaster as they became contract workers of NDA, which also hired production equipment. “The Herald” also reports that despite being the provider of the equipment and manpower, ZBC were not able to choose the guest speakers and moderators on the programme.
Speaking to MISA-Zimbabwe on 6 June, NDA Coordinator Kindness Paradza dismissed the assertions made by “The Herald” stating that the whole production, in terms of selecting speakers was done in consultation with ZBC. “The contract states that ZBC would control the editorial content and the only NDA people who were involved in the programme were me and Mutumwa Mawere (NDA Chairperson), who was the moderator. The whole programme was being produced by ZBC,” said Paradza. “The decision to ban the programme was not taken by ZBC but by Jonathan Moyo, (Minister of Information and Publicity). He thought that the programme was giving exposure to the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC),” said Paradza.
In its last programme the NDA featured MDC parliamentarian and shadow Finance Minster Tapiwa Mashakada and ZANU-PF’s parliamentarian David Chapfika. “Moyo thought the NDA had given exposure to the MDC because Chapfika was outclassed by Mashakada. He said it is not election time hence the programme must not continue. The surprising thing is that even the two vice-presidents said they enjoyed the programme and laughed off the fact that Mashakada outclassed Chapfika,” said Paradza.
Speaking to “The Herald”, Minister Moyo said the government fully supports the recent decision of the ZBC Board as well as the decision by ZBC management to terminate the NDA live production. According to “The Daily News” and “The Herald”, ZBC was supposed to make Z$4 million (approx. US$72,860) from the expected twenty-six live programmes. “It is not about money. Live productions can be tricky and dangerous. The setting on the NDA production was professionally done but maybe the programme should not have been broadcast live. You do not know what someone will come and say and there is no way of controlling it,” said Moyo. Speaking to “The Daily News”, Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Department of Information and Publicity Munyaradzi Hwengwere said that the decision to terminate the programme was taken by the ZBC board. “We understand why they took that decision and we support it. The professional integrity of ZBC was at stake,” said Hwengwere. However ZBC Board Chairperson Gideon Gono told “The Daily News” that the programme had not been banned. “It is temporarily off air and the move is not political. We review programmes from time to time, and some are aired for shorter periods. We are going through a transition in every department and this affects programming.” said Gono.
Gono has denied that the NDA live phone in programme was banned on political grounds, “The Herald” reported on 7 June. “It is unfortunate that this matter is being politicised when there have been other similar removals in the past, whose sponsors accepted the ZBC position with sincerity,” said Gono. “There are no other motivations behind this decision and it is our hope as a Board that the producers will accept that position. As for the NDA programme, it is neither the first nor the last programme to be taken off air on the basis of failing to meet the set criteria in terms of our public responsibilities and broadcasting standards….The said standards are not based on imaginary or speculative considerations but rather, on broadcasting integrity, responsibility, ethics and the inherent obligations of a national broadcaster such as ZBC.”
In an interview with “The Financial Gazette”, Mawere described the ban as unfortunate and regrettable. He said the letter of termination only referred to the issue of policy. “There’s only one broadcaster and in this case the broadcaster has spoken and if ever we wanted to speak through that broadcaster that opportunity has gone. The unfortunate thing is that the moment you reduce yourself to banning ideas then you have lost the essence of humanity,” said Mawere. He stated that “Talk to the Nation” was part of nation-building. “We see nation-building as an enterprise whose keystone is the regeneration, processing and implementation of ideas. You can’t build a nation alone or by talking to yourself hence our theme ‘Talk to the Nation’,” said Mawere.
Meanwhile “The Daily News” reports that Paradza has said that they are seeking a Z$1 million (approx. US$18,000) refund from ZBC for breach of contract. The NDA had made a partial payment for the twenty-six programmes they expected to broadcast. Paradza denied that the NDA was linked to ruling party ZANU-PF, saying that its members, who include business people, Mawere and ZANU-PF MPs Saviour Kasukuwere and Phillip Chiyangwa, sponsor the organisation. Paradza said that the banning of the programme has closed debate among different people. “People can no longer talk to the nation and to each other, only to themselves. Moyo has closed debate between people of different political backgrounds,” said Paradza. Opposition MDC MP and Information and Publicity Party Secretary Learnmore Jongwe said that the banning of the programme shows the level of intolerance prevalent in ZANU-PF. “The banning on the ZBC of the programme, by non-elected junior minister Jonathan Moyo, clearly puts it beyond doubt that the level of intolerance in ZANU-PF has reached such a stage that they are now having difficulties tolerating themselves. The party has reached such an advanced state of paranoia that they are constantly running away from their shadows,” said Jongwe. “The programme gave Zimbabweans a breath of fresh air and attempted to honour their right to freedom of expression and their right to fair and balanced debates.”
In addition, on 7 June, MISA-Zimbabwe issued the following statement:
MISA-Zimbabwe condemns the banning of the National Development Assembly (NDA) sponsored programme, “Talk to the Nation”, by the ZBC
The banning of the programme underscores a skewed understanding of the role of public broadcasting in a democratic country. The intolerance of opposing views that has been shown by ZBC and those who run it is not in the interests of Zimbabwe. There is a need for everyone, no matter their background, race, gender or political affiliation, to be heard through the only public broadcasting station that Zimbabwe has. The banning strengthens the call for the disentanglement of ZBC from the shackles of politicians who feel that the corporation is their personal fiefdom for the peddling of partisan views. MISA-Zimbabwe has repeatedly called for the opening up of the airwaves and the revising of the new broadcasting law, which is inherently flawed and undemocratic.
It must be noted that as long as the ZBC continues to operate under the authoritarian arm of the government, as the current Act provides, its role as a public broadcaster will forever be compromised. The banning of the NDA programme does not augur well for the development of a free broadcasting industry. MISA-Zimbabwe, therefore calls for the unconditional lifting of the ban and the implementation of the NDA-ZBC contract as previously agreed. The ZBC is a public broadcaster, supported by the taxpayers and as such it must be representative of all the people of Zimbabwe.
MISA-Zimbabwe would also like to draw attention to a veiled government threat against advertisers and businesses that advertise in papers that insult “our dignity as an African people”, to quote Professors Jonathan Moyo’s words in The Herald of June 5. It must be noted and emphasised that business people have a right to choose whom to do business with, without undue threats and pressure from anyone.
