STATEMENT BY MR THABO KAWANA, PERMANENT SECRETARY, MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND MEDIA, ON THE TERMINATION OF CAMNET TV CHANNEL FROM DSTV AND GOTV PLATFORMS
The Ministry of Information and Media wishes to inform the nation that it has not found any law upon which to advise His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia, Mr Hakainde Hichilema, to halt the termination of CAMNET TV channel from DSTV and GOTV platforms.
The nation may recall that Mrs Victoria Chiluba, during the funeral service of her late husband Pastor Moses Chiluba, called upon His Excellency the President to save CAMNET TV from being terminated from DSTV and GOTV platforms.
Following the appeal, His Excellency the President tasked the Ministry of Information and Media to deal with the matter conclusively.
The Ministry carried out preliminary inquiries, which revealed that the contention was a contractual matter between CAMNET TV and MultiChoice Africa Holdings, an international company domiciled in South Africa.
Consequently, the Ministry reported the matter to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) for investigation and recommendation.
After a thorough investigation, which included meetings with CAMNET TV and MultiChoice Africa Holdings representatives, the CCPC has confirmed that the decision by MultiChoice Africa Holdings to discontinue carriage of CAMNET TV on their DSTV and GOTV platforms is purely contractual and that there was no evidence to support any anti-competitive trading practices by MultiChoice Africa Holdings in the pay television market.
According to the findings by the CCPC, CAMNET TV consistently failed to meet the agreed-upon performance standards outlined in the Channel Distribution Agreement (CDA), specifically regarding feed availability and on-air hours, which led to concerns by MultiChoice Africa Holdings about equipment damage and a decline in service quality.
The Ministry notes from the CCPC Report that MultiChoice Africa Holdings repeatedly communicated these performance concerns to CAMNET TV station but the issues remained unresolved for years.
In view of the foregoing, the Ministry has found no legal comfort to advise His Excellency the President to halt the termination of CAMNET TV channel from DSTV and GOTV platforms.
In the alternative, we advise CAMNET TV to either negotiate a revised contract or explore the option of using other service providers such as TopStar and Muvi TV.
(Original copy signed)
Thabo Kawana
Permanent Secretary
MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND MEDIA
30th January, 2025
This should not even be news. The government cannot meddle in a purely business matter between two private entities.
If maybe it was ZNBC involved, the government can come in. The government should focus on more urgent and important matters and there are lots of it.
How much taxpayers’ money and time was wasted in trying to do the widow this favour?
This is pure madness, and people will be jailed for abuse of office after 2026.
Vote wisely in 2026.
I am sure if he didn’t do anything, you would still have “bashed” him that if Camnet was owned by a Zambezi Region owner, he would have done something. That I am 100% sure and you would not just have done one posting but several in ONE DAY, Sir. We have come to know you and accept your psyche, for what it is.
This is purely a business transaction involving two private companies Multi Choice Africa and Camnet TV.why involve the president and the government.Tonse alliance please stop confusing the masses…
We just thank PS Thabo Kawana for the excellent handling of the matter. His report is straight forward and understandable, these are the mature leaders we want because they are always sincere. People should know that it was the widow who had requested the President to intervene in the matter, it was not the President or the government who indulged themselves into the matter.
Just close this channel. Nobody watches it anyway as can be seen from viewership figures. Just a waste of time. Replace it with something tangible instead.