Friday, March 29, 2024

President Lungu advises the media fraternity in Zambia to be professional in their line of duty

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President Lungu addressing the Press
President Lungu addressing the Press

President Edgar Lungu has advised the media fraternity in the country to be professional in their line of duty.

The Head of State observed glaring disregard for journalism ethos coupled with sustained political bias among journalists and further appalled at the amount of effort put in by the media in seeing the conflict between him and his political rivals.

Speaking at State House Friday afternoon when he engaged with the media, President Lungu urged them not to be crusaders of conflict between political players but to provide a forum for public discourse and compromise.

“You need to create a chasm between journalism and social media craze. This no one can do apart from yourselves because social media is for all while journalism is for trained communicators but if you allow all and sundry to masquerade as journalists, your profession will perish,” the Head of State advised.

He regretted that with social media the truth is less important and the more exaggerated or inaccurate the communication is the more it seems to attract readership.

President Lungu, however, expressed pride that since the Patriotic Government assumed office there have been great developments in the media, including the digitizing of the airwaves.

The Head of State acknowledged the expansion of the media industry with the private sector taking the lead in the formation of radio and television companies as well as the recruitment of young Zambians to take up positions in the new broadcasting companies.

And speaking at the same function, MISA Zambia Vice Chairperson Hyde Haguta commended President Edgar Lungu for holding a media interaction with journalists from both government and private media at Statehouse.

In his vote of thanks, Mr. Haguta emphasized the need for a free press in order to allow the media to report freely on various developmental projects taking place in the country.

“There is a need to allow the media to report freely on the many developmental projects your government is implementing various parts of the country,” Mr. Haguta stated.

The MISA Vice President also handed over to President Lungu the 2019 quarterly State of the Media Report.

Kaizer Zulu
Kaizer Zulu

And Speaking at the end of the event , Political Adviser to the President, Mr. Kaizar Zulu said that the advent of social media was very welcome because it provided information in real-time.

Mr. Zulu, however, said the downside to social media is the mushrooming of not so credible media platforms were falsehoods are peddled with impunity.

He observed that the malicious news that is being published on some social media sites works to daint the image of the nation and has wondered what it benefits those that are in the habit of doing so.

He has urged the media especially online Journalists to be vigilant in verifying everything before publishing if they are to be taken seriously as credible media outlets.

19 COMMENTS

  1. Yawn. A few lies here and there on social media but largely good source source of real news that we want to hear. Actually we get more credible information on social.media than the so called mainstream media, worse the state media.
    Everything that PF government of liars hides we get it on social media.
    Social media even gives us what Trible HH wants to hide.

    • But Edgar Lungu is himself a very unprofessional individual. This guy is supposed to be a lawyer but he instructs the police to deny opposition freedom of movement and assembly.This man swore to protect the constitution of Zambia but the wantonly abrogates it ar every opportunity! Pathetic!!

    • Question 1
      Beans president did you call Chushi directly and told him ‘nge ifyo naumfwa (what about this I’m hearing?) Can you cancel it!’” according to Kalaba.
      It seems politics to you is a game.

    • Question 1
      Bwana president did you call Chushi directly and told him ‘nge ifyo naumfwa (what about this I’m hearing?) Can you cancel it!’” according to Kalaba.
      It seems politics to you is a game.

    • Can someone really tell us what you have learned from these past 2 days messaging from ECL concerning press conference and the so-called Media interactions?
      Have there been any reasonable comments concerning the matters that concern most Zambians?
      -Load shedding
      -Corruption
      -Rural Development
      -They want to build 4 more universities when some primary school education is conducted in thatched roof classes
      -etc

    • If I were Lungu I would advise journalists to re enter O level grammar schools so that they don’t write sentences like the second one in this story. That one going:
      The Head of State observed glaring disregard for journalism………

  2. Media, there is a friend in PHI, and power went at 05hrs yesterday at his house, up to now ZESCO as usual have not sorted out, to demonstrate how uncoordinated this institution is, one of their call center agents said it was loadshedding, loadshedding affecting one house the whole PHI, imagine. the other one said our teams are on the ground, that was at 01hrs and it is now 09 hrs. The guy drove to the ZESCO office Chudleigh at 02 and only found the guards. His complaint number obtained yesterday at 15hrs is still unresolved. They just gave him a complaint number 4552349. This institution mwandi is a bad customer service organization.

  3. But this is the same message the media are told throughout the year and every year.

    There’s nothing new the President said. This was a wasted opportunity for him to address the country about real concerns.

  4. Who cares about media?
    Mr. President, where are the jobs, medicines, money to buy food, electricity, protection from PF militia, rule of law, protection of fundamental rights and freedom, accountability for anything done by the public servants (remember, you are public servant), unbiased Police Service, accountability for expenditure of tax revenue, compliance with final judgments of the Courts, prosecution of the corrupt………………………………………….?
    Please Mr. President, solve the mess instead of picking on social media.

  5. Hearing Lungu address the “nation “or journalists yesterday i finally realised that we have a bigger challenge on our hands,even some market chairman can make sense.Who started campaigning right after the 2016 elections?Is it not Lungu who before he could get to work started talking about his eligibility for 2021?He questions the constitutional court judgment, a final judgment and trashes reconciliation attempts with Kambwili with the naivety of a market chairman. So his advisers found that impressive?

  6. Is he seriously calling the media to be professional? or simply in an unveiled way asking the media to take it easy on him with the impending dirty linen about to be revealed in public about his government? Why haven’t you given the directive to those ministers you made to stay illegally in office to pay back our money mr president? What is hard about you giving such a directive for the benefit of the people of Zambia? this shows where your allegiance lies and it’s not with the people of Zambia but with your buddies. You proudly gave a directive for the post news paper to be liquidated so why the silence now. What are you evading mr president or who is holding you at ransom amongst your ministers.

  7. What the bloody waste of time from this inept President!
    Instead of giving us the state of the nation and telling us about how he plans to turn around the economy which has been on its knees since he became President he is shamelessly dancing ngumbaya with unprofrssional hungry so called journalists. Shame on them too!!
    Instead of asking tough questions on so many issues that we deserve answers to they couldn’t wait for drinks to be served.
    Mwanya!!!

  8. All bull sh.it , matuvi

    Why has it taken lungu ever since he became president to realise these things he is talking about ?????

    Your caders have been terrorising the public for years and today you want to come out like you care about good governance. ????

    Common lungu,

    Zambians are not kids.

    The only benefit of all this bull sh.it from lungu is , it is too late.

    You will not turn things around……the rot is set and dry.

  9. All bul.l-sh.it , manure

    Why has it taken lungu ever since he became president to realise these things he is talking about ?????

    Your caders have been terrorising the public for years and today you want to come out like you care about good governance. ????

    Common lungu,

    Zambians are not kids.

    The only benefit of all this bull sh.it from lungu is , it is too late.

    You will not turn things around……the rot is set and dry.

  10. If there was any lingering doubts as to whether this man is fit for the job they were all answered yesterday, clearly the man is clueless as for his pride and arrogance all that will be gone soon.Zambians never forget this is Sata’s legacy,the man is not even fit to be District Commissioner in a normal functioning government…

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