PRESS STATEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE.
Contact: Cheelo Katambo – Deputy Media Director UPND
Cell: 0975704808/ 0976503165
Date: 14.02.24
WE DEMAND FOR AN INVESTIGATION IN THE LEAK OF HON MWEETWA’S AUDIO BY KBN TELEVISION STATION
We have sadly taken note of a social media voice recording of a private conversation between UPND Spokesperson and Chief Government Spokesperson Hon Cornelius Mweetwa and an employee of a broadcasting media house KBN identified as Mr. Innocent Phiri where Mr. Mweetwa was asking Mr. Phiri to help in clarifying some misinterpreted information arising from the press briefing held earlier in the day at the Ministry of Information and Media Premises.
As the party UPND, we find the recording and subsequent circulation of a private phone conversation for public use very unfortunate and uncharacteristic of a media house that claims to uphold media ethics and standards.
In as much as we understand that Mr. Mweetwa is a public person, his right to association needs to be protected and the decision by the media house to record and broadcast a conversation done in strict privacy and confidence is an affront to the enjoyment of that right.
What we find more appalling is the fact that the Media House did not only end at recording and circulating the said conversation on its social media handle but went on broadcast it during its main news later in the evening so as to justify the injury caused to the UPND Spokesperson and Chief Government Spokesperson.
As the party that believes in the independence of the media, we find this behavior unfortunate and a source of concern as it is meant to instill fear in not only Mr. Mweetwa, Government officials and other public persons but the general citizenry that believes in the power of the media.
In view of the foregoing, we demand that both the Zambia Police Service and the Independent Broadcasting Authority IBA conducts investigations to ascertain whether the Journalist and the Media are not in violation of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act number 2 of 2021 and the IBA Act number 17 of 2002.
Did the Media House adhere to the provisions of section 33 (a) of the IBA Act number 17 of 2002 which seeks for the respect of human dignity, rights and freedoms and contributions to the tolerance of different opinions and beliefs? We demand for answers from the IBA as the regulator of broadcast stations in the country.
We urge the Zambia Police Service to institute investigations and ascertain whether the Media house did not abrogate provisions under sections 49(4)(a) and section (54) of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act number 2 of 2021 which protects individuals from any form of cyber bulling and false publication of information using a computer system.
-Section 49(4)(a) provides that a person commits an offence if without authority to do so communicates, discloses or transmits any data, information, program, access codes to any person not entitled or authorized to access such data, information, program, access codes or commands and is liable to at least 2 years imprisonment if convicted.
-Section 54 further provides that a person who with intent to compromise the safety and security of any other person publishes information or data presented in a picture, image, text, symbol, voice or any other form in a computer system is guilty of an offence and is liable to a fine or imprisonment of not less than 5 years if convicted.
In as much as we support the promotion of the independence of media house and their freedoms to operate as indicated by the Head of State at several forums, we also demand for responsible reporting and programming by the media in order to enhance socio – economic development through accurate and factual information devoid of any malicious intent and violation of Human Rights and Freedoms to Associate or Express.
We further call on the IBA to quickly put its house in order as we have noted a growing trend of broadcasting media houses maliciously misinterpreting information meant to serve the community as was recently noted in a posting by a media house in Eastern Province which maliciously reported that a public structure built using CDF had collapsed when the structure in question was actually privately built and owned.
The UPND will protect and defend its officials at party and government level that are becoming targets of malicious media campaigns with intent to destroy their reputation. We therefore call on the two institutions to help us establish the intentions of the media house and its reporter in the recording, publication and circulation of a private conversation with Hon Mweetwa.
(C) UPND MEDIA TEAM
The one term party making noise.
Zambia will soon vote you out.
There might also be a case of soliciting on the part of the Minister who mismanaged a press conference that he himself decided to have for improvement of a dwindling image and obviously because this was for bad intentions everything collapsed in his face. They are now starting to behave like PF too soon. People don’t learn or just choose not to. What can they even fix? Zambians have moved on from PF shananigans of marginalising and closing media houses. This stupidity his to end otherwise they will just close themselves. Ask PF! HH should even stop talking about imingaloto, he should just work in a humble way for the citizens who gave him an opportunity.
Instead of firing Mweetwa you are busy looking for the source what for. So that you can shut it down and keep zambians in the dark? We are watching you, i think you don’t know people power until the day you will start wetting your pants in front of a mob ready to lynch you.
Fire him for telling the truth?
When your reputation hits rock bottom, it’s time to stop drilling!
This Lying Minister was not misquoted!
What he was doing in this Audio leak amounts to soliciting a bribe and corruption to hide the “truth.”
We know he is Tonga and the Tonga President will not fire him.
If UPND don’t fire Cornelius, they will be digging their own political grave!