ZMC entangled in financial and logistical problems

The Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) last week allegedly postponed to end of May 2010 a crucial workshop to expedite the licensing of new newspapers owing to financial problems and reports on allegations of disagreements among commissioners on resource persons to the workshop.
 

According to The Standard, the commissioners are allegedly divided on the hiring of Media, Information and Publicity Minister Webster Shamu, his Permanent Secretary George Charamba and Attorney- General Johannes Tomana and University of Zimbabwe’s law lecturer, Professor Geoff Feltoe. Commissioners with the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU PF) linkages are allegedly backing the Shamu team.
 
A committee headed by the ZMC Chairperson, Godfrey Majonga and deputized by Commissioner Matthew Takaona has been set up to look into the matter of resource persons.
                                                                                       
The workshop was, amongst other things, supposed to include a board meeting that would allow the commissioners to look into the applications submitted by mass media houses seeking licenses. This postponement is feared to result in further delays in the licensing new and old newspapers. It is alleged that the commission unanimously agreed that the first operating license would be granted to the banned Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe following the recommendations of a special commission led by the late Chinondidyachii Mararike after a High Court judgment which compelled government to deal with the ANZ case in 2007.
 
The ZMC’s operational problems are largely due to the fact that it still has not received its 2010 National budget allocation of US$ 47 000.
 
Background

The ZMC is yet to license new media houses since it was officially appointed on 19 February 2010. By 4 May 2010, the ZMC Chairperson Godfrey Majonga said the commission had received applications, with at least five new applicants making enquiries on the registration procedures; and Alpha media’s The Newsday, having completed and submitted its form for application. //End//

Reagan Malumo
Programme Specialist: Media Freedom Monitoring and Research
Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Regional Secretariat
21 Johann Albrecht St
Private Bag 13386
Windhoek
Namibia
Phone: +264 61 232 975
Fax: +264 61 248 016
Mobile: +264 81 311 2626

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