...The National Assembly passed the Multi Media Amendment Bill, 2013 which is awaiting Presidential assent to become law. We comment his Excellency the president for indicating that he will return the bill to parliament for further amendments, The State and all its organs are not the guarantors and or providers of media freedom, but the Constitution of the republic of Kenya which is the supreme law. The Constitution guarantees every citizen the freedom of opinion and conscience (Article 32), freedom of expression (Article 33), freedom of the press and media (Article 34) and right of access to information (Article 35) of the Constitution. Article 118 of the Constitution provides that where a right or fundamental freedom is to be limited by way of legislation (in the instant case the Multi-Media Amendment Bill, 2013), such law shall state that it is expressly intended to place limitations upon the said rights.The passage of Multi-Media amendment Bill, 2013 does is a case of mischief and selfish move by our legislature.The Passage breaches the Constitution. The effect of this draconian Bill will be to gag the media or at the very least to intimidate the media and take away from it the freedom to investigate, air and determine what to air out of fear of recrimination or being shut down as a result of hefty fines.The Tribunal purported to be formed through this bill will have powers to shut down or suspend operations of a media house or revoke the license of a journalist. We thank the President Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta for indicating he would not sign this Bill into law, we dont want our beloved country Kenya to join the ranks of some few countries which have restrictive media laws. Kenya should move forward and not backward. We dont want to witness the robust media climate enjoyed and thousands of jobs in the media industry to be threatened by a few malicious politicians.The Media Council of Kenya should be given powers to regulate themselves just as others like minded institutions. We want the assurances to remain as made by the Kenyan President Hon.Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President Hon.William Ruto that the Jubilee administration would ensure fair play and implement laws spelled out under Article 34 of the Constitution. Article 34(5) of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 provides that the Kenyan Parliament shall enact legislation that provides for the establishment of a body which shall: Be independent of control by government, political interests or commercial interests; Reflect the interests of all sections of society;....!
Posted on: Mon, 04 Nov 2013 19:41:02 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015