By Kasebamashila Kaseba
HOW LAURA MITI IN 74 DAYS MIGRATED FROM MEDIA SLAVERY ABOLITIONIST TO SLAVER PRIME TV NEWS ANALYST
Not that I know her. However, I have followed and admired Laura Miti, in the public space, both as a writer and person, for many years since the Times of Zambia in the late 1990s and later The Post in 2010s on the subjection of coach player and FAZ president Kalusha Bwalya to “The Peter Principle”.
(I have collected some newspaper cuttings.)
I have met her in person, at a few functions including one at the U.S Embassy about 2017 during her presentation on the national budget tracking etc and joined or press covered her protest and arrest at Parliament grounds alongside Pilato and Sean Tembo etc over the 42 firetenders for $42 million in 2018.
We met again at the “red card” campaign at the same venue in 2019.
I later followed the Magistrate Court case that silenced the protest or debate.
I earlier once produced and hosted her on Prime TV “Update” programme in 2016.
I have also followed her on her Facebook posts including her recent one time frustration with HH’s ignorant argument or justification of 4 of 25 (16%) ministers being gender (im)balance of other HH’s tokenisms.
She also recently posted in very bad taste post on the death of Tutwa Ngulube, 43, (1979 – 2022) she claimed was distorted.
That was after another controversial post dismissing a group of party presidents’ press conference announcement that upset one Saboi Imboela who has since gotten insulting of “unbathed” her.
Of particular interest is the post on 20th September, 2022, “Working Conditions in Private Media Houses Are Just Shocking!” albeit without naming media owners and houses with Boer, Apartheid slavery conditions and pay.
Some 73 days later, on 1st December, 2022, she debuted on Prime TV News Analysis, a show I created to the opposition and reluctance of slaver Gerald Shawa who has since sued or lawfared me into silence or constructive dismissed as alleged of PF and EL national interest retirements.
Shawa not just rejected the Prime TV News Analysis segment concept in replacement of Edwin Zulu’s “Proverb of The Day” segment but also later tried to cut it from initial five or 10 to two minutes.
He later overcompensated Simuuwe with the segment ownetship and to news analyse for about 30 minutes.
Shawa with the basest instincts has since 2014 not just daylight robbed, gaslighted and dehumunised me (among others) about my others of dues in using others either government and unprofessional NGOs opportunists bought with appearances.
Today, Prine TV News Analyst Mark Simuuwe can still double as UPND consultant driving Prime TV branded vehicle and Prime TV analyst, which is dismissable, without the shock or shane of UPND, HH and Laura Miti.
She was very much aware of that examplar slaver private media owner Prime TV Shawa she didn’t name or has had an idea of my court case among others.
Apart from not naming Prime TV private media slaver or ones organising awards for already better paid musicians and sportsmen, she instead has blasted “rich” James Ndambo or “predatory” Trade Kings.
Well, perhaps she was doing it for attention or money.
Otherwise, I think public life and the media are not just about knowledge, analysis of things or money but also about moral conscience integrity and credibility.
How did the Prime TV “senior” lawyers in 2020 withdraw from the closure of Prime TV High Court case?
For me, she fails the morality and integrity questions, especially for not critical of the very slaveholding private media like Prime TV or not condemning the UPND as PF even when the Human Rights Commission (she is a commissioner) statement or the MISA/USAID Freedom of Expression Report 2022 are incriminating UPND or the church pastoral letter as bad as the PF or worse than PF.
To regard PF and EL wrongs as wrongs or crimes but UPND and HH wrongs and crimes as right is immoral and Stockholm Syndrome.
Otherwise, one month earlier, 2nd November is the “International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists” that she and UPND ignore.
And 2022 is the deadliest year with Zambia Police arresting a Muvi TV crew for “disorderly conduct” contrary to Section 60 of Chapter 107 of the Laws of Zambia for the covering the home arrest of Chilufya Tayali and UPND cadres raiding a radio station to beat a presenter on air without shock of her or UPND.
In the end, it is a case of when Prime TV’s money speaks Laura Miti’s moral conscience listens.
