The Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has appealed to government to urgently intervene in the financial woes being faced by the Times of Zambia Newspapers.
ZCTU General Secretary, Misheck Nyambose, said in a statement released to ZANIS that the congress is deeply concerned that workers at the Times of Zambia have endured financial hardships due to a poor financial situation at the medium institution.
Mr Nyambose said government should come up with urgent measures to rescue the company from the current financial difficulties in order to alleviate the suffering of the workers due to non- payment of salaries.
“We are worried because any further deterioration of the financial woes is a serious threat to the existence of the company and jobs at the Newspaper,” he said.
Mr Nyambose has further called upon government to investigate the performance of the board and management at the Times of Zambia for failing to make the company competitive and make use of the little resources available to effectively manage the affairs of the company.
He stated that Times of Zambia is run on similar lines as other public media institutions but wondered how other media houses are managing to survive while the Times of Zambia is failing lamentably to be viable, a sign which he said denotes poor planning by management.
Mr Nyambose said it is unfair for the company to fail to pay workers’ salaries while expecting them to continue producing the newspapers, further stating that the act is a violation of workers’ basic human rights.
He said government cannot continue talking about media reforms on poorly funded media institutions as the situation at Times of Zambia can contribute to media institutions being biased.
Zambians made a very big mistake by voting for Edgar Lungu…i wish tomorrow was 2016.,,,,,,
Lazy institutions, with over employment. close it, if it can not sustain itself. these government owned Newspapers have no strategy / innovation, they want to be told what to do?? in these modern times?
That news paper looks the same from the time I was 5 years?? what nonsense is this? so if dull employees can not run it?? shut it down..
more opportunities for young Zambians to start their own news papers??
Why should the government intervene if these institutions can not survive by operating on commercial models then let them fold. The Times of Zambia serves no purpose to the nation except as propaganda mechanism for incumbent regimes. Our government is too broke to worry about worthless historical monuments like the Times of Zambia. ZCTU and the FARMERS UNION are still quiet as our farmers are suffering and they speak up for a useless institution like the Times of Zambia? LIQUIDATE Them they serve no viable purpose. Who reads the times anyway?
Today’s Times of Zambia headlines still calls President Lungu as ‘Edgar’ despite people’s protestations and advice to the Times management. In other words, they have not only ignored our advice but also continue to hurt our feelings, and yet they want us to bail them out. What arrogance! Even the Past refer to Lungu and not Edgar.
So forget the bail out just shut them down, we will not miss rude editors like them, just as we would not miss the “renowned” Past editors if they shut down on account of failure to manage their financial and tax affairs as well as moral standing in society like all good businesses do.
It is good to see that the Zambia Daily Mail has responded to our feelings, kudos to their editors!
In Zambia the government should only make an environment condusive for businesses to grow and thrive. Plus Laws that make doing business and breeze but also police the nonsensical entities.
Privatise it you *****s!
Who needs a government run newspaper in this modern times . Such media houses have become irrelevant, as information is available from many other sources. The government should just sell both the Times and the Zambia Daily mail
Wait for new MD just appointed
Kwena chi lemoneka ba ZCTU they don’t know what issues they are supposed to address. Asking govt to fund media is against the principles of democracy. ZCTU is encouraging the executive to own the institutions we depend on for speaking out against poor rule. This is encouraging the stifling of freedom of expression. A liberated union would encourage govt to privatise the media. The govt should hand the times to a cooperative of journalists working there and in this way encourage private business and freedom of speech.
Remember you communists ZCTU and you govt leaders: Both freedom of expression and private investment are the cornerstones of democracy! Ala!
have they remitted all their tax obligations if they cant pay salaries? ZRA should move in as it Did On Post newspaper