CARELESS JOURNALISM HARMFUL Goweditswe Kome for BOPA Journalists have been urged to practice responsible journalism and observe the highest ethical standards as careless journalism can destroy a country. Botswana Meat Commission (BMC) chief executive officer, Dr Akolang Tombale, said this during the World Press Freedom Day in Lobatse on May 3. Dr Tombale said it was imperative for journalists to check facts saying some often abused the freedom of expression. “In the practice of journalism, our media must recognise that it is the country first and must always be patriotic by defending the country,” he said. He said media personnel should report wrong doings in a manner that would build the country. He also noted that good governance was understood as society’s ability to guarantee the rule of law, free speech, open and accountable government. “In turn, freedom of expression is an essential pillar of governance because this right enables as many citizens as possible to contribute, monitor and implement publics decisions on development,” said Dr Tombale. The importance of free press in promoting good governance, he said, was underlined by the increasing number of people who had access to an expanded realm of media platform. He noted that free media remained a central conduit for on-going public assessments of activities of governments and other institutions that had developmental impact. Furthermore, Dr Tombale pointed out that transparency in governance was of great relevance to development and the role of news media in this regard was of paramount importance. He said lack of transparency bred corruption, which was one of the hardest issues that the state had to face in the development process. Independent investigative journalism, he said, was an ally of open government and thereby enhanced the effectiveness and legitimacy of developmental processes. “This is greatly supported with a strong right to information law that enables the citizenry, including the news media to easily access information in the public domain speedily, freely and readily,” he said. “I therefore urge the minister of presidential affairs to hasten the drafting of the Freedom of Information Bill as he promised three years ago,” Dr Tombale said. He also observed that regulatory reforms of media and defamation laws were a necessary step in the direction of good governance and development adding that criminal libel laws remained disproportionate in terms of international standards on the legitimate limits of freedom of expression. Such restrictive laws artificially protected officials from being scrutinised by media or the public and ultimately have a chilling effect on freedom of expression and were crippling to good governance in the long run. In his welcoming remarks, assistant district commissioner, Mr Ernest Phiri expressed disappointment on media for its poor coverage of Lobatse township. Mr Phiri urged journalists to ensure that their reporting “is always responsible reporting as we have only one country that if not provided with good reporting, might scare away potential investors.” He said that media practitioners should take pride in their reporting and ensure that they give prominence in developmental issues in their country.
Posted on: Tue, 06 May 2014 08:59:22 +0000
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