   |
|
afrol News, 14 May - The Department of Information and Publicity in the President's office will not entertain any queries or inquiries from reporters or media organisations that are incapable of reporting accurately, the Minister of Information and Publicity in the Presidents Office Jonathan Moyo said in a statement, according to a report in The Herald. Moyo said that the lack of professionalism and journalistic ethics has become prevalent in the media. "There now appears to be a pattern that has developed within the oppositional press to deliberately twist, distort, misrepresent and falsify news and information apparently for political purpose at the expense of the public's right to know, and at the expense of the interests of professional and ethical journalism," said Moyo. Moyo was reacting to a headline that appeared in the business weekly, The Financial Gazette, which said that 'President Mugabe will not stop company invasions' that are being orchestrated by war veterans and the ruling party, Zanu PF's, supporters. Moyo said that the headline was misleading, sensational and inconsistent with direct quotes in the story's text. The Financial Gazette, according to The Herald, had allegedly been informed by the President of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI), Zed Rusike, that he would seek a meeting with President Mugabe on the company invasions by war veterans and Zanu PF supporters. - The reporter's question, and whole context was whether the president would meet Rusike, and the response was that Rusike should seek a meeting with the workers and not with the president, said Moyo. "Furthermore the department advised the reporter that his allegations that the invasions were continuing was baseless and infact false." - Against this background, Mr. Rusike's purported request to meet President Mugabe was made through The Financial Gazette and is misplaced as it smacks of politically engineered and rather desperate oppositional attempts to make a mountain out of a mole hill, said Moyo. - Mr. Rusike, the CZI and the oppositional press should know that justice delayed is justice denied. It is the employer who should address this issue of social justice, not the President, said Moyo. Jonathan Moyo and The Herald newspaper are themselves sued for a defamatory story in that the paper about Sandra Nyaira, The Daily News political reporter. They jointly face a Z$ 250,000 defamation lawsuit.
|
