Oshakati
The Governor of Oshana Region, Clemens Kashuupulwa, has once again accused regional reporters of blocking the dissemination of information about his office to the public.
Kashuupulwa, who at various occasions has lashed out over the lack of media coverage of official events in Oshana, took to the stage at the launch of the nationhood and national pride campaign to express his dissatisfaction.
“They are failing us, it is as if they do not know their role in society,” said Kashuupulwa sternly. He further accused some journalists of having an agenda of magnifying stories to insult and disrespect national leaders.
Reporters, who spoke on condition of anonymity, explained that sometimes there are a number of events happening at the same time and they cover events based on the newsworthiness.
“His problem is that he wants journalists to follow him around, but sometimes there are other equally – or even more – important national events and we have to cover these events, as we look at newsworthiness,” said one journalist.
The said journalist also complained about the underfunding of state media, saying at times they do not have a sufficient number of vehicles and this hinders their ability to provide wider coverage.
Kashuupulwa reminded the press that they have a crucial role to play in disseminating accurate information to people, who do not have first-hand access to such information.
“It is as if the media does not even appreciate the public, who rush to buy their newspapers to get educated and be well-informed,” Kashuupulwa argued.
Earlier this year, during the Minister of Information and Communication Technology Tjekero Tweya’s visit to the region, Kashuupulwa also accused the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation of “selective morality”.
In an article published by New Era on June 8, Kashuupulwa accused the national broadcaster of giving coverage to beauty pageants instead of national leaders.
“Can you imagine a traditional leader sitting at the main table with the minister, but they will never appear on TV? All you see there are those beautiful ladies on TV, instead of national leaders,” Kashuupulwa was quoted as having said.
He again urged the media to cover national events in the region, in order to improve the flow of information to the wider public.