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Statement on Honorable Chikwinya's House of Assembly notice
Zimbabwe Association of Community Radio Stations (ZACRAS)
December 07, 2011
The Zimbabwe
Association of Community Radio Stations commends Honorable Settlement
Chikwinya for giving notice to move a motion seeking to annul the
current Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe Board.
This motion
has our full backing!
The Newsday
of 7 December 2011 reports that Mbizo Member of Parliament, Honorable
Settlement Chikwinya, gave notice in the House
of Assembly to move a motion seeking to annul the current Broadcasting
Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) Board. This was long overdue.
According to
the Newsday, the motion will call upon Parliament to dissolve the
current BAZ Board following its unilateral appointment by the Minister
of Media, Information and Publicity Webster Shamhu, on September
30, 2009. The motion is expected to be seconded by Zaka Central
MP, Honorable Harison Mudzuri.
The appointment
of the current BAZ Board was done despite the existence of provisions
in the Broadcasting
Services Act (BSA) (2007) and Constitutional
Amendment number 19, which stipulate that the appointment of
the BAZ Board is done by President Robert Mugabe in consultation
with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and the Committee on Standing
Rules and Orders.
Honorable Chikwinya
indicated that the motion will also seek to condemn BAZ' issuance
of licenses to ZimPapers' Talk radio and Supa Mandiwanzira's
AB Communications; and call for the annulment of the licenses. The
licenses were awarded by an improperly constituted body, and law
abiding citizens of Zimbabwe do not wish to be associated with such
lawlessness.
ZACRAS commends
Honorable Chikwinya for taking an initiative that seeks to address
irregularities within Zimbabwe's broadcasting sector. His
call is consistent with ZACRAS' position that there can never
be any media diversity and freedom as long as the current improperly
constituted BAZ is in office. The nation's worst fears have
already been confirmed with the controversial licensing of ZimPapers
Talk Radio and AB Communications.
It is ZACRAS'
belief that when the nation called for media diversity and plurality,
they meant having different voices in the media industry. The current
promise from the improperly constituted BAZ is to give the nation
a dosage of the same old voice. Whereas previously, Zimbabwe used
to have Radio 1, 2, 3 and 4 singing from the same hymn book, the
licensing of ZimPapers' Talk Radio and AB Communications can be
likened to the licensing of Radio 5 and 6 so as to amplify the discredited
singing.
ZACRAS stands
guard and ready for the licensing of community radio stations as
envisaged in the African Charter on Broadcasting, which calls for
the establishment of a 3 tier broadcasting system comprising of
public, commercial and community radio stations.
It is only when
communities have access to information and can freely express themselves,
that they can enhance their participation in governance from an
informed point. Licensing community radio stations will also go
a long way in assisting communities in their fight against HIV/Aids,
gender based violence and Human Rights abuses.
ZACRAS calls
on other progressive MP's such as Honorable Harison Mudzuri,
to resoundingly support Honorable Chikwinya, and all of us who are
keen on a better Zimbabwe.
Visit the ZACRAS
fact
sheet
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