Sylvia Mweetwa
27 August 2008
analysis
PRESIDENT Levy Mwanawasa, who died in a French hospital on August 19, will be eulogised for many things, but the Zambian media fraternity will definitely extol him as a friendly and well-read leader.
Although the late president did not speak that often about the media, he still acknowledged it as an important factor in the development of the country every time he officiated at various functions.
Even as he left the country to go for State duties elsewhere, President Mwanawasa seemed to have always felt duty-bound to meet the media. The most obvious reason would be, judging by his honesty in handling public affairs, that he never wanted to leave room for speculation as to where he could have gone and for what purpose.
Several times when journalists would be told by the late president's aides that he was too busy to meet them or issue any statement, Dr Mwanawasa shocked his advisors by personally asking for the media personnel.
Dr Mwanawasa often disregarded the advice of his own advisors to go out of the way and create room for the media, which speaks volumes in terms of the importance that the man attached to the role of the media in development.
That was President Mwanawasa. But of course, there were also times when he shocked the media personnel by leaving them flying out their cameras, notebooks, and recorders without uttering a single word.
The man was simply unpredictable. Sometimes, he would leave the country without saying anything at the airport and when he returned, the journalists, possibly expecting the same cold reaction, would somehow withdraw and choose to observe him from a distance. But he would shock them by personally starting to look for them, and stand still in readiness for their questions on diverse subjects.
This is why it was a painful experience for many journalists on Saturday, as the plane carrying the body of the president touched down at the Lusaka International Airport. They looked solemn, the faces cast down and many hardly took any notes.
In the past, before he landed, they would all be arguing on who was going to ask the first question - and what type of a question each one would ask to avoid repeating themselves.
But Saturday was different. The man was back, but no reporter could line up to interview him. Instead, they all focused intently on the casket in disbelief as the proceedings of the day went on.
While he lived among the living, Dr Mwanawasa might not have talked that often about the media. But the few instances when the late president made comments directed specifically at the media or spelt out his perception of the media, he was always candid and forthright.
In all such cases, he will be remembered for having been honest and not sugar-coating his feelings. Zambians still remember vividly how the president lambasted the public media for what he called "too much of praise" and advised them to offer constructive criticism to his policies. That was at the International Airport a few years ago.
Even early this year, when the floods battered southern Zambia - swamping crop fields, displacing people in thousands, and washing away bridges and roads - the president spoke strongly against the "reserved" manner in which the Zambian media was covering the floods.
Saying he was forced to depend on reports on BBC, Sky Sports, and CNN to understand the intensity of the floods in Southern Africa as a whole, the president condemned the Zambian media for being conservative in the way they were reporting the floods.
In January this year, during the official opening of Parliament sessions, Dr Mwanawasa said the fight against poverty and corruption could not be won if the media was not fully involved.
He acknowledged the media as a powerful educative and information tool for development and that it could also act as a whistle blower and provide checks and balances to society and Government. Which is why Government remained committed to creating a conducive environment for the media to operate freely and to ensure a free-flow of information among our people.
It is now time for the leaders of the Government to pick up from where President Mwanawasa left, by providing legislation that would facilitate freedom of the Press in the country.
The Government is currently in the process of introducing legislation that will help in the classification of materials for public viewing and check on the proliferation of illegal video houses.
But what journalists certainly need above all, is a speedy legislation of the Freedom of Information Bill, which has been dragging since 2002. That would be the best way of honouring the Mwanawasa media legacy, especially that the late president also spoke highly of his administration's commitment towards promoting and protecting human rights.
In fact, many Zambians are quite aware that throughout Dr Mwanawasa's seven-year reign, he never signed any death warrant for all the prisoners who were sentenced to death.
So, there goes the legacy of President Mwanawasa, the man who spoke his mind on issues of the media, human rights, poverty, food security, and other important aspects of development.
The Zambian media will surely miss President Levy Mwanawasa for all he was to them.
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