Top ZNBC Post in Limbo There is a tight contest between two top Patriotic Front (PF) diplomats Frank Mutubila and Ben Kangwa as the two are ‘fighting’ over the job of Director General at the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC). Two weeks ago, the ZNBC board of Directors interviewed possible candidates for the position that was left vacant after departure of Chibamba Kanyama. The contenders included Ben Kangwa and Frank Mutubila who flew into the country from their respective diplomatic missions in the United States and Europe last week. Some of the individuals who applied for the position from within ZNBC are the current spokesperson Masuzyo Ndhlovu and one Rose Chumpuka, but these were not called for interviews because their applications were failed to meet the basic minimum qualifications. According to sources at ZNBC, Mutubila and Kangwa are the fore-runners for the top position at ZNBC and it is not known who sponsored their air travel from their respective missions abroad. Frank Mutubila is the current Zambian envoy to Italy, while Ben Kangwa is the deputy chief of mission in the United States of America. “We had Ben Kangwa and Frank Mutubila who came from abroad for the interviews. It is an epic battle because they are both politically correct as they are sworn PF cadres and their standing in the ruling party is fine. We also had Masuzyo Ndhlovu and Rose Chumpuka who also applied but they were not called for interviews. The board actually felt it was too ambitious for a person like Masuzyo to apply for such a job because he does not qualify and it was wishful thinking for anyone to even imagine giving such responsibilities of running the national broadcaster to a boy like him,” the source said. According to the source, Ben Kangwa was being favoured to take the job because he had been a very loyal to the ruling party. The source said Frank Mutubila was also not conceding because he was making contacts with senior government officials and was using PF members to influence Michael Sata to award him the job. The source said Muutubila had a very big ego that he was the most preferred candidate and he was using his usual pomposity to make headways. During the interview, the source said both Kangwa and Mutubila were very confident about scooping the position and it was apparent that each candidate was basing his buoyancy on the support from various ‘forces’ in government. “We may actually see split if one of them is not appointed. Both Ben Kangwa and Frank Mutubila have invested so much hope in this job and one of the would be so disappointed,” the source said. The job of Director General was left vacant at ZNBC after the then office holder Chibamba Kanyama left the corporation to take up an appointment at the International Monetary Fund in Washington recently. Kanyama left amid speculation that he was hounded out of the job to pave way for Ben Kangwa who was considered to be a loyal PF member. According to leaked information, Kanyama was removed from ZNBC because he was operating professionally, but his actions were to be working against the government and ruling PF.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 05:29:22 +0000
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