Story by Tafara Chikumira
The Kwekwe community has thrown its weight behind the proposed Broadcasting Services Amendment Bill saying the piece of legislation will change the national broadcasting landscape if passed into law.
The Bill is drawing huge interest from stakeholders who are yearning for a better broadcasting industry that speaks to their needs.
The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Media, Information and Broadcasting Services was in Kwekwe this Saturday where stakeholders proved their knowledge on the tenets of the bill while airing their expectations on the piece of legislation.
Pastors for ED chairperson Evangelist Idirashe Dongo said, “What we want is to see ourselves in the media. This bill must address issues like local content being aired in vernacular languages. We want the bill to stimulate energy on having diverse content so that we deal with foreign content which promotes immoral behaviours like homosexuality. We also want critical programmes like parliament debate to be done in vernacular languages.”
“As a Kwekwe resident, I am so happy that you came here to listen to our views regarding this bill. We want to see to it that we have exciting programmes on our radio and television stations. This can only happen if our state broadcaster is capacitated. I therefore support the clause that says people should pay their car radio licenses before paying ZINARA licences. That way, our state broadcaster will be capacitated in a huge way and we are bound to receive quality programming,” said a resident.
Another added, “I am happy on the proposal that BAZ should sit after every year to consider granting of new radio licenses. This will bring efficiency on prospective license seekers, unlike in the past where it took forever before such considerations were made.”
The acting chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Media, Information and Broadcasting Services Honourable Gift Mambipiri is pleased with the response from the public since the commencement of the public hearings.
“The responses are great and so far, we have covered some ground. People are clear about what they want in the broadcasting field. One thing for sure is that they want to see the industry grow. People also want to see themselves in the media through content that is appealing to local needs. Another area that they are emphasising on is the issue of capacitating the state broadcaster through making people pay radio licences before paying their ZINARA licenses. They are saying this will help to bring quality broadcasting.”
The Broadcasting Services Amendment Bill is being touted as a game changer in addressing grey areas that have been hampering quality broadcasting in the country.
