HOW MINISTER MWEETWA’S SILENCE WAS BEST ANSWER TO ZNBC PRESENTER CHISULO AND UPND STATE TRIBALISM
HOW MINISTER MWEETWA’S SILENCE WAS BEST ANSWER TO ZNBC PRESENTER CHISULO AND UPND STATE TRIBALISM
— where Chisulo maybe wrong; Mweetwa is wronger —
— where was Mweetwa when ZNBC hounded Jack Kalala, Maureen Nkandu, Brian Mwale etc or when Prime TV routinely fires senior staff —
Where and how can ZNBC as a national or public broadcaster continue still to broadcast in only seven of 72 local languages even to the exclusion of Lusaka catchment area or communitylocal languages of Mukuni-Lenje and Soli left either to local communities or private local radio stations or religious radio stations, that is 60 during years diamond jubilee of independence, since 1964?
UPND is sensitively than sensibly reactive to PF and such little social media blunders than address the heavier local language of broadcasting policy or legal framework already with the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) or as the PF did in 2012 with local languages of education.
Mweetwa better focus on policy and legal framework than the ZNBC feedback and complaints procedure for producers and managers without even ZNBC management or board.
As a Mukuni-Lenje belonging to the Bantu-Botatwe languages, that includes Tonga plus seven other languages, what ZNBC presenter Chisulo did to the Lozi caller, is what Tongas commonly do to other Bantu-Botatwe languages, even Tongas resident in Lusaka or among Mukunj-Lenje areas for many years, still say they don’t understand the host Mukuni-Lenje or Soli.
Chisulo should have perhaps encouraged the caller to use broken or mixed English than state her and her panel’s language proficiency or preference or recommend ZNBC radio one to a caller already speaking English.
Mweetwa as part of the executive arm of government should have learnt Parliament and courts during local language barriers resolved without drama or social media uproar.
If anything and if Mweetwa understood basics of broadcasting, he should have been the one to protect his presenter Chisulo as HH has protected him and other ministers even when they are clearly wrong.
Jack Kalala and Maureen Nkandu and Brian Mwale were hounded out of ZNBC by government than enjoy government protection.
Free ZNBC and Chisulo from Mweetwa interference.