Friday, March 29, 2024

The Speaker should explain why media houses were banned from the opening of parlaiment

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President Sata being welcomed by Speaker of the National Assembly Dr Patrick Matibini during the opening of parliament on September 19, 2014 -Picture by THOMAS NSAMA
President Sata being welcomed by Speaker of the National Assembly Dr Patrick Matibini during the opening of parliament on September 19, 2014 -Picture by THOMAS NSAMA

Colleagues our disappointment with parliament to disallow all 129 accredited media houses to cover the opening of parliament on Friday 19th September 2014, cannot got without the strongest condemnation in deserves. It seems as if the speaker of the National Assembly and his staff do not fully understand what public institution and public figure means.

We are therefore disappointed that the public even was made private by denying independent media houses to cover it and give the public an objective view. The question is what will the Zambian people debate about if not matters of public interest such as President Sata’s speech? President Sata’s speech was supposed to be broadcast throughout every inch of this country. And the only way that would have happened would have been through these media houses. Unless parliamentary business is not important to the Speaker, but it’s our belief that Parliament is the single most important institution to this country. Its decisions and activities affect the public directly, this is not a lesson we should even give to the management at Parliament.

We therefore demand an explanation from parliament immediately on why they denied the Zambian people access to parliament. The Zambian people could not get a reaction from some Members of Parliament immediately after the speech because their representatives (the media) were denied entry into a public facility.

I am also request the UPND MPs to file a question to the Speaker to ask him why the media were denied access to parliament on Friday.

In same breath, we would like to register our displeasure with the continued harassment of journalists by cadres from thugs sponsored by the Patriotic Front (PF). We may not always agree with editorial policies of various media houses but harassment of their reporters is not acceptable in any society that claims to be based on Christianity. Let all well-meaning Zambians and Christians condemn this acts strongly.

Canisius Banda
Vice President – Politics
UPND
___________________________
UPND Information (PI Dept)

58 COMMENTS

  1. Because predominantly those media were there to report adverse news regarding the president

    They were there to report the ‘Let us see how he is, how he looks, take a picture of him’ etc syndrome

    But like Alexander the great, the President performed admirably, leaving all innuendos shocked and cold.

    The bottomline in all honest is that, the place needed only reasonable and a handful of the media

    If anything the media should be banned because of their inconsistency and lies against President Sata

    No story for me here

    Thanks

    • ZNBC covered it in full. so no complaints here . We all know that the private media considers twisted facts and wierd looking pictures as news.

    • Sometimes its important to regulate the private media, we know they are there to make money thats priority number 1, the rest comes after that. Any government including the PF will always give you freedom of speech , but your freedom after your speech is not assured. Ask Edward Snowden

    • As ever the “empty tins” have taken gratification in this “injustice” upon Zambians. One wonders which part of the phrase “Public institution” is so hard to comprehend that this should be a debating point. Let those private media report what they want to report. Let them publish the pictures that they want to publish. That will not change the FACTS. If Sata is “fit and working hard for Zambia”, the images and any reporting will not hide that FACT. However, as we have seen and heard, the FACT is that Sata is unwell and his Family together with the PF leadership should be ashamed for strenuously denying what are FACTS. If anything, this is what is fannying the rumours that Mr so UN-Wiseman @ 1.2 above is most fearful of. I dont know when reporting FACTS became rumour peddling

    • weather their reporting is not positively according to people in high offices. We the citizen will always factorize something and make news out of it. The speaker is the let down .Probably also tries to explain why we need new constitution where the speaker will not be proposed or install by president unlike current regime .

    • The if true decision was good. Most of them just went there to report how the president was looking and had zero interest in the budget itself.

    • Mushota after you read the article on Lusaka times which is part of media, you then develop diarrheoa of the mouth and start spewing rubbish like a brainless i.diot. I’m disappointed with you. No wonder you claim to be woman when you carry something long in your bamba.

    • One of the basic principles of having a strong democracy is a free press. If the President cannot show his face in public, then he should resign.

    • After going through a few blogs I can’t believe that people in Zambia have sunk so low that they are in support of the barring of private media houses from covering such an important event .what on on is going on?Nabamilowa bushe to the point where you just support just because it is pro-pf?
      pf remember that the post campaigned for you?

  2. Yes because most of them are too negative. They just pick up the negatives leaving out the positives which in the long run are what might contribute toward national development.
    UPND you should just see the picture that your little Zambian watchdog doctored to make Sata seem like he had collapsed and was helped to his feet by his wife. With such kind of biased and sensational reporting you leave parliament with no choice.Grow up !!

    • I agree Saulosi,

      They had nothing to write about because he defied all odds by producing a strong admirable speech and go to NY.

      These people will die with hate
      Like you I feel so sorry for people who claim the President is sick.
      He keeps defying all the odds , they are just ‘mere facade’ to him.

      Best to give up, and let him concentrate on the job we elected him to do atleast until 2021

      Changing government now will delay the strong Implementation programmes currently being undertaken, that will be a shame.

      Thanks

    • Of course Ex-moma you are at liberty to misinform but, the nation is equally at liberty to stop your campaign.

      Advise Canicius Banda to address only his cadres as “Colleagues” and not the whole nation.

    • Mushota after you read the article on Lusaka times which is part of media, you then develop diarrheoa of the mouth and start spewing rubbish like a brainless i.diot. I’m disappointed with you. No wonder you claim to be woman when you carry something long in your bamba.

    • so saulosi u never so how de presdo fall ,where do u live kawalala yiwe,that is de problem with u slaves in foreign countries,u just coment without watching de video/live walk.

    • They go their to ‘ukusampa ifyakulya’ and take a few pictures, then they forment whatever story fits their agenda. They should actually stop inviting all these lumpen media houses and just show the presiential adress live on ZNBC. Whoever, is not happy with this, then tough!!!

  3. people will always have a view of things but in as much as i condemn people who wish MCS dead, i also condemn in the same measure barring of reporters to such an important occasion. I want to salute the resilience of MCS, alikosa mudala. parliament was opened by HEMCS not delegated. i think we should move on and wish our president good health. it will not be helpful for anyone of us to wish anyone dead. its barbaric, unhealthy and nauseating. will i vote for PF? NO, will i vote for UPND? NO. Do i wish HH dead? NO. Do i wish MCS dead? NO

    • Shame to Zambia under Panga family.We have backsliden into the 18th centuary.Were are our human rights and Democracy we fought for under chilluba.We have pipo like saulosi,Mushota and Kudos whos IQ is so low just like apes during late stone edge no wonder the Muzungus stole broken hill man to study him.Zambians we are too docile and easily indoctrinated.Why hide a president as fit as a fiddle .

  4. I have always said that the truth is like burning fire which cannot be hidden under dry leaves. Hiding someone’s sickness is like a woman trying to hide pregnancy and expect her to get away with it. If someone is sick, let it be known so that solution is found. You may be hiding ubulwele ubwakwata umuti.
    All along the media have been involved, others are objective in the way they report while others are not, so denying them access to that important national event was extremely unfair and unfortunate. The speaker if at all he is a speaker should speak and tell the nation why it happened in a biased manner.

  5. ZNBC coverage of the official opening of Parliament was circus because picture deliberate taken at very far range and made them not to be very clear for people views see really state of SATA. even when he fall down we so him but not very clear

  6. It doesnt matter whether the status of the president is reported accurately or not by the purpate media. The truth of the matter is that no one can change the truth! If the presidenr is fine, the private media would not change that. If he is sick neither the private nor the publc media would change that. When the reality strikes, hiding becomes impossible whether by the state of by the private media. I wish all well and God Bless mother Zambia with truth and justice

  7. I think ZNBC is doing a remarkable job these days under the PF leadership. From the opening of Parliament, they brought undoctored images and audio, footage which was authentic and not malicious or biased.
    UPND honestly, there’s no need to complain on everything, makes you sound useless. Let us be fair. ZNBC on the news yesterday clarified that no media house was banned by government. If one rotten media outlet lied to all of you that no private media was allowed, and you listened to the falsehood and stayed home, you can only blame the inborn styupidity in your small brains shaa.

    • Ba Saulosi naimwe bwaiche ubu. You cant support every nonsense even if PF is your personal Property. We need to rise above this type of Kaponya support. Namafi yonse ku supporter. Start reasoning basaulosi. Limbi nimwebo ka Parrot?

  8. Very nice, why should these tu ma media full of IZETO come around my president? The president needed fresh air in parliament. It was a good move indeed. In any way, the event was well covered by ZNBC….case closed , next.

    • This reckless campaign by the PF zealots is being aimed at Mr. Sata himself. By banning and ” disallowing all 129 accredited media houses to cover the opening of parliament on Friday 19th September 2014,” they successfully created a negative impression in the minds of the public that there was something of significant magnitude they did not want to see spill into the public arena. The event was protected from independent and direct public view. But that, in the least, damages Mr. Sata’s presidency. How sad.

    • Theirs was akin to Judas Iscariot’s kiss. Consequently, they ought to be told in no uncertain terms as did the master to the uncouth scoundrel: “Friends, do you consider yourselves smart and clever to betray the King Cobra, President of the Republic of Zambia with a kiss?”

      Purporting to be kissing him, they were hissing at him. Purporting to love him, they loathe him. Purporting to care for him, they sneer at him. Otherwise, what do we make of their cold sarcasm when they tell us that the president is well and strong when in fact he is sick and frail?

    • In the allegorical “Clothes of the King,” everyone pretended not to see what they were seeing. But a child from the crowd shouted: “The King is naked, the King is naked.” Some from the crowd scornfully shouted back at the poor fellow, castigating and insulting him, telling him to shut-up and behave. But he wouldn’t.

      Some eventually caught-up to the boy’s anthem. They too started shouting: ” the King is naked, the King is naked..” The king was indeed naked and the little fellow was right. They call it ‘mob-psychology.’

      The PF have viciously been defending their position that the president is not sick. Need they not then explain why they banned the media houses from covering the opening of parliament last week? Don’t we deserve to know?

  9. PF CABINET SHOULD STOP INSULTING OUR INTELLEGENCE

    WHAT A SHAME FOR PF CABINET TO HAVE BANNED 129 ACREDITED MEDIA HOUSES. THIS IS AN INSULT TO US ZAMBIAN. THE PRESIDENTIAL SPEECH IS MADE TO ASSURE ZAMBIANS HOW THEIR AFFAIRS ARE GOING TO BE MANAGED. BUT YOU DECIDED TO DENY ZAMBIANS WHAT THEY WERE EXPECTING TO HEAR FROM THEIR EMPLOYEE. CABINET MUST UNDERSTAND THAT ITS ZAMBIAN PEOPLE WHO HAVE EMPLOYED SATA AND THEM ALL. SHAME ON YOU. ELECTIONS ARE COMING WE SHALL WHAT YOU WILL TELL ZAMBIA PEOPLE. READ FRED MMEEMBE OPION AND GET SENSE. FOR TO DAY FRED MMEEMBE ‘S OPION ON PF IS VERY CORRECT. WAIT WE HAVE ALMOST ENTERED A COUNT DOWN TO 2016. NO CONSTITUTION, NO JOBS , NO MONEY IN THE POCKETS, NO FREEDOM OF ASSEMMBLY AND ASSOCIATION, PF SHOULD KNOW THAT THE NAME OF SATA IS NO LONGER SELLABLE…

  10. Am glad Mushota and Saulosi have hinted that changing government now in their wapped thinking would be bad. The main point is changing government now is receiving public attention. Banning news media itself is confirmation to the general public for PF government to be voted out in order to change for true democracy to Zambians.

  11. Liberty doesn’t mean that one has to say whatever he wishes to, at any time, anywhere, whatsoever, without sensoring his ideas. What holds liberty in any democracy is understanding responsibilty. It seems like most of these opposition people and leaders do not understand responsibility. If ZNBC covered the function, there was no need to call all 129 media houses to parliament. Imagine where reporters would be sitting to cover congress with America’s 4,000 plus media. Mr. HH, don’t make mountains out of mole hills

  12. Ka Sata can ban reporters in his bedroom but not our national parliament. Having said it, i think the reporters would have a hell lot to report if they were allowed in the former, hahahaha

  13. But all the same freedom of experession and assembly remains abused. In all circumstances, such events way back history, ALL media be it private all public have had access to cover such procedings. Doest it mean they where afraid of the brave stance by some private media houses of continuing to unearth heir foes?

  14. I can answer for the speaker. Why should the govt accommodate people are speaking negative about President SATA instead of praying for and supporting him. Honestly who can accept to work with people who are hammering you on the back.
    Simple and straight forward

    Regards

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