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Media Commission Open for Business - Bill Watch 18/2010
Veritas
May 03, 2010
The Senate has
adjourned until Tuesday 15th June, The House of Assembly has adjourned
until Wednesday 30th June, Media Commission Open for Business on
Tuesday 4th May
From Tuesday
4th May to 4th June the Zimbabwe Media Commission [ZMC] will receive
applications under the Access
to Information and Protection of Privacy Act [AIPPA] for renewal
of:
- registration
of mass media services and news agencies and
- accreditation
of journalists and
- permission
for foreign media services to operate representative offices in
Zimbabwe.
Late renewal
applications will attract a daily penalty fee.
New applications
can also be lodged from Tuesday 4th May onwards.
The ZMC offices
are at the Rainbow Towers. Telephone: 04-253638.
The relevant
application, registration, accreditation and penalty fees were gazetted
on Friday 30th April in SI 91/2010. [Electronic version available
on request.] The principal fees are as follows:
Registration
of mass media service: application fee $500, registration fee
$1 500, renewal fee $1000
Registration
of news agency: application fee $300, registration
fee $1 000, renewal fee $500
Accreditation
of local journalist: application fee $10, accreditation fee
$20
Accreditation
of local journalist working for foreign media: application
fee $20, accreditation fee $100
Temporary
accreditation of foreign journalist: application fee $20, accreditation
fee $80
Permission
for operation of representative office of foreign mass media service
or news agency: application fee $500,
permission to operate fee $2 000
Penalties
for late renewal: accreditation $1 per day, registration $10
per day.
Legislation
Update
New Bills being
printed:
Two new Bills
are in the Parliamentary pipeline and are being printed by the Government
Printer:
- Criminal
Law (Protection of Power, Communication and Water Infrastructure)
Amendment Bill
- Zimbabwe
National Security Council Amendment Bill.
Copies are not
yet available; they will only become available once the Bills have
been gazetted.
Acts
of 2009: All 2009 Acts have now been gazetted. [Note: the
Audit Office Act, which was gazetted on 2nd April, is not yet in
force; its date of commencement will be fixed by statutory instrument
in due course.] [List of 2009 Acts showing dates of commencement
and current status available on request.]
Land
Expropriated for Urban Development: General Notice 75/2010,
gazetted on 23rd April, notifies the compulsory acquisition for
urban development of three pieces of land in Harare, registered
in the names of Zimbabwe Tobacco Association, Jetmaster Holdings
and Pinnacle Holdings respectively, the latter two companies controlled
by Mr Philip Chiyangwa. [Note: This is a conventional expropriation
for public purposes under the Land Acquisition Act. It is unlike
an expropriation of agricultural land for resettlement under the
land reform programme, in that fair compensation must be paid within
a reasonable time and both the expropriation itself and the assessment
of compensation may be challenged in court.]
Statutory
Instruments:
SI 83/2004 fixes,
with effect from 1st May 2010, the rate of contribution [3%], and
a ceiling of $200 for the insurable earnings on which contributions
are payable, for the purposes of the National Social Security Authority
[NSSA] Pension and Other Benefits Scheme. This belatedly gives effect
to an announcement by the Minister of Finance in his December Budget
speech. [Available on request.]
SI 81/2010 specifies
assessment rates for contributions to the NSSA accident prevention
and workers’ compensation scheme, also with effect from 1st
May. [Available on request.]
SI 89/2010 fixes
new monthly allowances payable under the Traditional Leaders Act
to headmen, village heads and chief’s and headman’s
messengers; they range from US$100 for a headman down to US$20 for
a headman’s messenger. [Available on request.]
SI 90/2010 fixes
new court fees for the Labour Court.
Commencement
of Petroleum Act:
SI 84/2010 fixed
26th April 2010 as the date of commencement of the Petroleum Act.
This was Act 11 of 2006, gazetted in February 2007, but has never
been brought into force. [Electronic version of Act available on
request.]
Summary
of Petroleum Act
The Act provides
for the setting-up of a new parastatal, the Petroleum Regulatory
Authority, the functions of which will include ensuring the provision
of sufficient petroleum products for domestic use and the regulation
of the procurement, sale and production of petroleum products. Petroleum
products include petrol, diesel, illuminating and power paraffin,
liquid petroleum gas, aviation fuel, and lubricants.
The Authority
will be controlled by a five-person Board appointed by the Minister
of Energy and Power Development after consultation with the President.
Its functions will be exercised in accordance with general policy
directions given to it by the Minister, but otherwise it will enjoy
independence from outside control.
The Authority
will administer a licensing system under which only holders of licences
issued by the Authority will be allowed to procure, sell or produce
petroleum products. Procurement, retailing and production licences
are envisaged. Existing licences issued under the Control of Goods
Act and regulations will continue in force as if issued under the
new system. Appeals against the Authority's licensing decisions
can be made to the Administrative Court.
The Act refers
to the importance of effective competition in the petroleum industry
and requires the sale of petroleum products to be conducted in an
open, transparent and competitive manner.
There will be
a Fuel Price Stabilisation Fund, funded in part by a fuel price
stabilisation levy to be enacted by statutory instrument gazetted
by the Minister with the approval of the Minister of Finance. The
Act states that the levy may be applied to “any person or
class of persons whose activities are affected by fluctuations in
the price of fuel”. This is very unclear, and it is hoped
that any statutory instrument gazetted will clarify who will be
liable to pay the levy. The Fund will pay out subsidies or bounties
for local production of fuel [presumably biofuel] and contribute
towards fuel price stabilisation schemes.
There will be
a continuing role for NOCZIM. It will be responsible for maintaining
strategic reserves of petroleum products. And it will be deemed
to be the holder of such licences under the Act as are appropriate
to its operations.
Veritas
makes every effort to ensure reliable information, but cannot take
legal responsibility for information supplied
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