Welcome


Want some insight in Namibian politics? I am no expert but have 16 years (1995-2011) of writing on Namibian politics in The Namibian newspaper and can probably offer you a bit more than you know about the who's who in the Namibian political zoo. You will also find a few articles commenting on other issues of concern in the country. Hope you find it interesting. - Christof

Friday, April 16, 2010

All Want A Finger In The NBC Pie

THERE is tragedy in the fact some top current and former media professionals have decided not to apply for the post of Director General at the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC).

Government’s interference and the Swapo infighting for positions are directly to blame for the sad scenario that has played itself out at the national broadcaster.
This is the same NBC, previously known as SWABC, which Hidipo Hamutenya, shortly after he was appointed Information Minister in March 1990, said had been operating as a propaganda machine for the South African government and he intended ensuring that “it serves the public”.
The present troubles started when Swapo – then still firmly controlled by its former President Sam Nujoma – ordered Cabinet to replace Nahum Gorelick (who had taken over from Piet Venter) with the former Deputy Minister of Information, Dan Tjongarero.
We have since had many DGs and acting DGs of the NBC.
The broadcaster has almost become a get-rich-quick scheme. Anyone getting the job is guaranteed a five-year contract which will end prematurely with a megabucks payout!
The end result negatively impacts the quality of news output as well as the potential of visionary leadership at the national broadcaster.
The NBC is in fact a lesson in how ill-conceived attempts at change can ruin a powerful institution.
Another example of Government interference at the NBC, especially with editorial policy, was in June 1995 when the then Chief of Protocol from the office of Nujoma, Martin Andjamba, entered the NBC newsroom and ‘ordered’ that unedited footage of a presidential press conference be played in full on the evening television news.
The NBC ended up carrying an edited version of the press conference on the news bulletin, which was followed by transmission of the unedited footage.
That set the tone for interference and the NBC reverting to a State propaganda tool as the SWABC had been before Independence. It also became a battleground for those aspiring to become Swapo Members of Parliament.
As time moved on what was initially an autonomous NBC board shortly after Namibia’s Independence in 1990 was replaced by people who were either active members of the ruling party and/or high-ranking civil servants in the Swapo-led Government.
Deploying party apparatchiks to boards such as that of NBC blur the boundaries between Government, these boards and their executive management.
Above all, only one of the current board members appears to have any broadcasting experience.
The NBC has become the mouthpiece of the Government, and allows little if any substantive criticism of Swapo in its reporting.
In fact, politicians from all sides want a finger in the NBC pie. That is why Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) leaders heaped insults on NBC reporters during their recent campaign for the Okahandja constituency by-election.
This was not merely a skirmish in the vicious war between those who believe the NBC should be a servant of the Government of the day and those who believe it should serve the public.
All political parties trying to get a hold on the NBC is a dangerous and astonishingly stupid idea because it would make the Corporation directly beholden to them.
I know that I am on thin ice here but cowards are notorious for taking refuge in silence when trying times call upon the brave to risk the moral hazards of taking a public position.
That is why I call on the chattering classes in political parties that have developed a voyeuristic obsession with the NBC to distance themselves from the broadcaster and allow professionals to run its business.
Once that happens, the NBC will be inundated with applications for the DG position and won’t waste money on running adverts for weeks on end to get enough CVs in to justify an appointment of someone who was already earmarked for the job.
Until Government gives the NBC its autonomy back, we will continue to see qualified and able prospective candidates staying well clear of the corporation.
As for those appointed in the meantime, both the Board and the appointees will be taking a fat chance. So much so that they get a fat cheque within a few months!

* This article first appeared in The Namibian.

No comments:

Post a Comment