Luanda — Angolan Social Communication minister, Manuel Rabelais, met Monday in Luanda with directors of public and private media organs, representatives of trade unions and journalists, with the aim to assess the state of the sector and improvement of the civil services.
Apart from evaluating the sector, the meeting, held in a government's perspective of permanent dialogue and concert, mainly focused on the electoral process and the journalistic activity, constraints in the electoral process context, as well as the presentation of proposals for the creation of the National Journalism Prize.
Concerning the functioning of the sector, the officials considered that despite the constraints, there has been an effort to improve the technical quality of the subjects and adjust its contents to the public interest.
In his speech, the deputy secretary general of the Angolan Journalists Union (UJA), Paulo Mateta, spoke of the need for a definition of of civil services and regulations to be observed by organs for the accomplishment of their mission.
According to Paulo Mateta, there is also the need for, in the name of democracy, giving the same space of antenna to political parties, as well as a wide coverage of the main problems that affect citizens.
In his turn, the secretary general of the Journalists Trade Union (SJA), Luísa Rogério, said that it is high time other news priorities were defined, apart from politics, in order for the citizens to be reflected on the means of information, mainly those that are public.
"Thus, the analysis of the social reality should be made in the light of ethics and deontological principles that govern the profession, as well as the editorial policies of each sector", she referred.
The heads also stressed the main constraints, both on a technical point of view, as well as financial, that hinder a better performance, apart from the permanent training of staff, to overcome difficulties in terms of quality.
Each organ should come up until Wednesday with their proposal for the composition of the jury of the National Journalism Prize, to be announced on May 03, a date dedicated to press freedom.
At the end of the meeting, the deputy minister of Social Communication, Miguel de Carvalho "Wadijimbi" stressed that the event aimed at assessing the sector's difficulties and what should be the best relationship between the Ministry and the various entities so as to contribute to the supply of a service closer to the citizen.
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Representatives of the Public Television of Angola (TPA), National Radio (RNA), Angola Press Agency (ANGOP), Jornal de Angola (state-run daily newspaper), Rádio Eclésia (catholic radio station), Semanário Angolense (private weekly paper), Luanda Antena Comercial, UJA, SJA, Ajeco, among others, attended the meeting.
