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State of the media in Southern Africa 2002
Namibia
By Pauliina Shilongo
Lecturer, Department of Media Technology, Polytechnic of Namibia
During 2002 the Government of Namibia increased its animosity towards
the free and independent media. President Sam Nujoma also
targeted the public broadcaster, the NBC, throughout the year. The
campaign culminated in President Nujoma giving himself the ministerial portfolio
of Information and Broadcasting in an unexpected Cabinet reshuffle at
the end of August. Events that took place following Nujoma’s self-appointment
signalled that the environment for the media in Namibia is changing for
the worse.
On 27 August 2002 President Sam Nujoma announced that he would take
over as the Minister of Information and Broadcasting. In a Cabinet reshuffle,
the president split the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Information and Broadcasting,
which had been joined together in another Cabinet reshuffle in 2000.
He decided to personally take over the reins of the Information and Broadcasting
division. Nujoma claimed that the move was necessary to clean up the
management crisis at the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), which
had long been plagued by financial instability and infighting between the board
and management of the corporation. Two days after President Nujoma assumed
his new position it was reported that the Cabinet had approved a N$100
million bail out for the NBC.
At the press briefing where the President announced the take-over, he also
made thinly veiled threats against journalists. Pointing to an NBC journalist
at the briefing Nujoma asked if the reporter was one of NBC’s undisciplined
employees. “Are you one of them? If you are, you will be dealt with, rest
assured,” the President said.
He added: “Now what kind of NBC is that? Is NBC working for the interest
of this country? As journalists we all have to defend Namibia. The NBC acts
as agents of some enemies.”
Soon after taking upon himself the portfolio of Information and Broadcasting,
the President initiated some changes in the NBC TV programme schedule.
The television news slot in indigenous languages was moved from 22h00
to directly follow the English bulletin at 20h00 at night and the English news
was rebroadcast at 22h00.
Soon after that, during a visit to the public broadcaster, President Nujoma
lashed out at some of the foreign programmes broadcast on TV. He called
So This Is Democracy? 87