Parliament fights Malawi media as opposition seeks to give MBC K1
Parliament on Wednesday turned into a boxing arena and the punching bag as the government and opposition legislators battled over media professionalism and ethics as well perceived poor parliamentary coverage.
Making his contribution on Media, Information and Communications parliamentary committee report, Chitipa south MP Werani Chilenga accused journalists covering the House proceedings of unprofessionalism, unethical and towing political party line when covering parliament.
He gave an example of the issue of the K4 billion the government set aside for development in various constituencies, saying the issue was distorted and blown out of proportion.
“The whole House agreed to have the money for development purposes but some section of the media portrayed as if the money was to be given to individual MPs. It is not surprising that some honourable members started changing tunes after these distorted media reports,” he said.
He said this was not the kind of reporting parliament wants, saying the House was a law making arena not a news making arena.
Chilenga then asked the National Assembly to fast track the opening of its own radio and television.
Mzimba Solola MP Jacob Hara suggested all journalists covering parliament should be vetted for their competency.
He gave an example of the state run Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) which he said favours the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in its news coverage.
“When we complain of bad journalism at MBC, we are referred to Macra (Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority). When we go to Macra, they send us to MBC. I do not see why Macra fears MBC or why MBC is larger than Macra,” he said.
He therefore said he would not vote for any money to go to MBC.
Nkhotakota north east MP Martha Lunji Chanjo said denying MBC money was not a solution to the problem.
She alleged that private owned media houses, Zodiak and Times are also biased towards the opposition and suggested that parliament summons the management team to reprimand them.
But the chairman of the parliamentary Media Committee said the House is interested in MBC because it uses tax-funded money.
“This House passes the budget for MBC, we give them public money so that they cover all parties equally, professionally and ethically,” he said.
He said parliament has limits on how to reprimand the private media, saying the owners use personal money and can decide what news to carry in their media outlets
Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :
While others are buffled with the bringing in of private media houses into MBC debate, I for one I am not buffled. I cannot understand the Parliamentally Media Committee Chairmaperson’s reasoning that the house was concerned with MBC because it uses public money. I can only describe his reasoning as irrational. May be he was out of his mind, otherwise all along I have been holding Hon Kawale in very high esteem. The issue under discussion was professionalism and not funding. Was the said committee implying that if you use private resources then you are licensed to be unprofessional and throw ethics to the dogs? Is that one of the MCP’s policies just like the one of denying development to the people of the north on account of their low population? Let people like Brian Banda and Kasakula be sacked at Times Radio and Tv and form MCP Radio and Tv. By the way Times Radio and Tv are run on tax payers money through unremitted taxes.
Thumb up Hon Lunji Chanjo for educating this unethical Media Committee Chairperson that denying MBC money cannot solve the problem. Thumb up Hon Chilenga for suggesting that Parliament must have its own radio and tv stations so that journalism professionalism must be applied unselectively. Thumb down Hon Kawale for legalizing unethical journalism so long as the beneficiary is MCP.
The battle against corruption cannot be won if the fight is targeting public institutions only. The private sector must also be subjected to similar scrutiny.
Ine ndikuti to hell with MCP, over my dead body! Those supporting it were not there in the70’s or 80’s. Ambiriwa ndi mayuthi. Analiko anzanu a Youth enieni, a imvi koma ali mayuthi, mukudziwa zimenezo inu! Enafe azibale athu anasowa for good chifukwa chake akuti chotsegula shop on 3rd March. Basi nkutenga munthu nkukadyetsa ng’ona, mpaka lero munthu kulibe. Kumetanso kutikaniza, ati tikangoyerekeza kupanga mwambo wometa atimanga..Zoonadi sapita kawiri, continue the fight MBC, achuluka kusapota MCP ndi ana, they don’t know what was there in those days. Ndipo it’s my prayer that there shouldn’t be something called MCP ruling Malawi again.
John Tembo played that game of giving MBC K1 but he ended up losing the battle because like current proponents, he was not honest about really wanting MBC to be freed. If Tembo like today’s proponents got into power, they would abuse MBC the same way.
Please, Members of parliament listen to our cry. Shut down this thing callled MBC. Let Sumbuleta, Phillip Bussiness, Hope Chisanu and other equally stupid journalists at MBC go and start their DPP Radio. Weare tired of this thing called MbBC. It’s not relevant in Multipatty Dispensation.
MPs themselves are weak. They should summon both Macra and MBC to tell them to do their work
Why and how people bring in the issues of private media houses (like Times and Zodiak) in the debate of MBC’s bias baffles some of us! Is it not clear and straightforward that MBC uses our taxes and that Zodiak, Times, and other private media do not get any taxes from us? This nonsense must stop! Let whoever gets our taxes account for those taxes – period
Correct. We have nothing to do with Zodiak or Times. These are commercial media. They can do anything. They are there to make a profit. They exist to make money.
MBC is a public broadcaster. It is there to serve the public. It is funded by you and me through taxes. Aubrey Sumbuleta and his whole team are very unprofessional and useless. My prayer is that once DPP leaves office nx year, the incoming government should advertise for the post of Director General so that a professional person is recruited and change things at MBC.
MBC ikufunika kuigulitsa ikungotithera ndalama, misonkho siilipiranso chonsecho ma program ake ndi phala lokhalokha.
MBC is a public broadcaster. If it has programmes which do not please MCP it does not mean that others are also not being pleased. I enjoy ‘Sapita Kawiri” teaches me of how bad MCP was.
The problem with MBC is our own parliamentarians whether from opposition or government.Those from government MP’s i have never seen them voting against the government even if the boss says we are going to kill your children the answer you hear from them is YES BWANA and for the opposition ones,once they have been bought and given money they always vote in favour of the government even if the bill is a bad one.Lets wake up Malawians for how long should we be debating about this stupid MBC?
ine ndine Mlomwe weniweni wa pa phata. ndimasangalala ndikamaona a lhomwe anzanga akuwerenga nkhani pa MBC TV ngati steve Maseya , a Malopa ndi ena otero . MBC apatseni K1 billioin Kwacha osati K1 chonde ma MP ndimvereni
We dont need MBC in Malawi now. Its a waste of Tax payers money. Close it and open a school of journalism there
Give them one tambala not even kwacha!! We pay the taxes, just like them and they should never try to be clever on our money!! Apo biiiiiiiiiii ndiye azitenga mitsonkho ya anthu a dpp okhaokha zathuzo ayiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!! Ndati chani????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
Option no.1 – K1 allocation to MBC (no back door funding by Baddal).
Option no.1 – Stop listening to MBC, there are a million Radio stations out there
Option no. 3 – All Malawi MP’s should go to Kwacha School, alipo ambiri ma school oterewa!!
This radio so called MBC will be reformed in May 2019 all Phillip Business and his Sumbretta will go and seek job to dpp radio not MBC that was well established by Kamuzu to educate, inform and intertain Malawians. How it intertain dpp fokofo wautali 2019.
mpaka boxing ground? this is the unprofessionalism being said here. Nyasa times, do you have editors? Back to MBC, I know its not a media house anymore. Its a cartoon network! And there is this things called Hope Chisanu….total rubbish
Please just close MBC. It is irrelevant.
So there are some MPs who can’t differentiate between Public and Private media? No wonder we are where we are as a nation; ignorant people are called honourable.
Right on point.
Most MP,s never went to school so they don’t differentiate between Public and Private media. Please give MBC 5 Tambala. The balance they will get from Chaponda
😂😂😂😂😂
Thats well said. Some people they don’t know when to stay quite. Shame
Good observation. Our MPs are ignorant!
Opposition MPs must act now! This is long over-due. This MBC is not only unprofessional and unethical it is also immoral and blatantly EVIL.
How can Philip Business or Sumbureta feel kuti Times/ Zodiac TV adzionetsa ma video clip a iwowo ngati ananfedwa pa maliro a m’bale wawo but misrepresenting or using the clip for campaign purposes. Angamve bwanji? Ufiti? chani?
Ma picture a akapolo a slave trade what do they have to do ndi nkhanza za MCP? This is sheer EVIL, Where is umunthu?
SHAME on matchonas!!!