Broadcasters eyeing political seats told to quit by April
By Geoffrey Mosoku, February 3, 2022
The Communications Authority (CA) has asked broadcast journalists seeking political offices to leave office within a month.
CA Director-General Ezra Chiloba said the law governing broadcast journalism requires aspirants for political office to quit by April 9th in accordance to IEBC’s election timetable.
Chiloba said the Kenya Information and Communication Act, which gives CA regulatory powers on persons engaged in broadcast and the programing code, has to be adhered to.
Chiloba says the code states that if a person working on programmes for a station becomes a candidate or is employed or retained in any capacity by a political party or aspirant, he or she shall go on leave for the duration of the election period or his/her employment terminated.
“Therefore, the Authority requires broadcast licences to ensure the aspiring candidates associated with or employed by their stations, to take their required leave of office by 9th of April,” Chiloba (below) said in a statement.
The CA boss also asked broadcasters to remove politicians from the running of their stations to avoid interference in media content. “To ensure objectivity in elections coverage, employees who have expressed interest or who are seeking elective offices or involved in a campaigns be barred from the day-to-day operations of the stations, to avoid interfering with editorial independence and potential unfair use of their media office as a campaign platform,” Chiloba added.