Acting minister of information and broadcasting, Fackson Shamenda says government has unwavering commitment to creating a conducive environment for the growth and professional media in the country. Acting minister of information and broadcasting, Fackson Shamenda says government has unwavering commitment to creating a conducive environment for the growth and professional media in the country.
Mr Shamenda stressed disappointment with some online media outlets that abuse the conducive media environment that government created by pursuing private agendas.
“The high levels of unethical and unprofessional conduct we are seeing on some online media platforms, border on utter criminality under the pretext of press freedom” he said.
Mr Shamenda noted that government will not sit by to watch citizens suffer such abuse at the hands of the criminals pretending to be journalists adding that the law will take its course.
Meanwhile, World Press Freedom Day Organising Committee Chairperson, Henry Kabwe said press freedom is a powerful tool in ensuring good governance in any democratic country.
Mr Kabwe stressed that it would be useless for government to recognise other rights in the country while neglecting press freedom.
“This day is not for the media as a dissemination of information, it is for the larger public out there and we as professionals are just mere servants” he added.
Mr Kabwe noted that censorship, brutality, threats, intimidation and shutting down media houses did not affect the journalist or various media houses but the audience receiving the information.
He however called on the media fraternity to maintain ethical standards as a way of to protecting and promoting peoples freedoms with accurate and balanced information.
The trio was speaking at World Press Freedom Day commemoration under the theme “ reaching new goals: free media fortifies the post-2015 development agenda” in Lusaka.