BY THE GUARDIAN REPORTER
16th May 2013
The Tanzania Editors Forum has suspended indefinitely the membership of the Editor of Mtanzania Jumatano Charles Mullinda following a news article published on his newspaper dated April 17 this year which did not abide by professional ethics.
According to a statement availed to The Guardian yesterday TEF reached the decision after it received and discussed a report by a three man subcommittee led by Nipashe Editor Jesse Kwayu which was formed to investigate the circumstances which led to the publishing of the article.
The article published mentioned two editors Ansbert Ngurumo of Tanzania Daima and Deodatus Balile of Jamhuri newspaper that they are colleagues of Joseph Ludovick, an accused in the terrorism, case being involved in the incident of attacking TEF chairman Absalom Kibanda before Mulinda as the editor Mtanzania Jumatano, the statement said, failed to verify the correctness of the information and even when demanded to prove the allegations against the two editors he could not do so.
The probe team also established that there was extra pressure in publishing the story because the news that the article could be published was known one day before publication of the article.
TEF however advised the New Habari (2006) Limited leadership and other media houses to improve their editorial monitoring systems to curb the loopholes for controversial news to be published thus undermine other people without proof.According to a statement availed to The Guardian yesterday TEF reached the decision after it received and discussed a report by a three man subcommittee led by Nipashe Editor Jesse Kwayu which was formed to investigate the circumstances which led to the publishing of the article.
The article published mentioned two editors Ansbert Ngurumo of Tanzania Daima and Deodatus Balile of Jamhuri newspaper that they are colleagues of Joseph Ludovick, an accused in the terrorism, case being involved in the incident of attacking TEF chairman Absalom Kibanda before Mulinda as the editor Mtanzania Jumatano, the statement said, failed to verify the correctness of the information and even when demanded to prove the allegations against the two editors he could not do so.
The probe team also established that there was extra pressure in publishing the story because the news that the article could be published was known one day before publication of the article.
In his letter to TEF Acting Chairman, Mullinda said he was withdrawing TEF membership, as he was not satisfied with its conduct.
“I have decided to withdraw my membership because I am not satisfied with the decision reached of interfering with the freedom of information,” Mullinda said.
Faulting the probe team report, he said it had a number of logical shortfalls which he presented in the meeting but they were not taken into account.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
No comments :
Post a Comment