In the past few days there has been a deluge of government statements berating private media coverage of President Robert Mugabe, his wife First Lady Grace Mugabe and Zanu PF.
This came to a head when editors held a meeting with Information minister Chris Mushohwe and his permanent secretary George Charamba.
In normal situations, the meeting should be viewed as between stakeholders and, therefore, equals, rather than the situation where one party behaves like it is a feudal overlord, seeking to whip an errant slave into line.
Charamba has also in recent weeks threatened that more stringent laws could be introduced to bring the media into line, the height of being disingenuity.
The carrot-and-stick approach that Charamba and his ministry seem to be advocating for is not only archaic, but goes against the spirit of the Constitution that seeks to promote free speech and freedom of the media
That newspapers report frequently about the First Family is a result of a closed society that has been fostered by the government and Zanu PF that Charamba speaks on behalf.
The First Family and Zanu PF seem to be omnipresent in Zimbabwe, both economically and socially, and every Zimbabwean is bound to be curious about them and what they are up to.
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For example, Grace’s rallies, despite her not being a government official, are broadcast live on State television and every right-thinking Zimbabwean would be curious as to why this is the case and why this privilege is not extended to other officials.
Charamba then claims Grace shares the throne with her husband, but nothing can be further from the truth than this. In Zimbabwe we vote for Presidents and not First Ladies and there is no throne to be shared in a democracy.
If the government wants better coverage of the First Family and Zanu PF, the onus is on Charamba, as the President’s spokesperson, to provide local reporters more access to Mugabe than what is currently obtaining.
In most cases, Mugabe only gives interviews to pliant State media and chosen journalists, forcing most media to speculate, look for stories at rallies or use anonymous sources, an unconducive situation Charamba has helped cultivate.
It was refreshing to see Mugabe, on the eve of the 2013 elections, fielding questions from local and foreign journalists, but such cases are rare and few and far in between, thanks to an unseen Iron Curtain that blocks the media from accessing the President and other leaders.
Grace, on the other hand, has not shied away from threatening the private media and this fosters a culture of hostility.
So instead of Charamba focusing on threatening the media, he is best advised to cultivate better relations between journalists, on one hand, and his principals, on the other.
It is not enough for Charamba to excoriate the media while we do not know what he is doing to create better relations.
Our aim is to provide the most objective news coverage of everything in Zimbabwe and we appreciate honest partners who are willing to cultivate better relations between the State and the media for improved news coverage.
However, we frown on threats and fear-mongering, which we believe are anachronistic and unhelpful.
