By Shikuva Kapumburu
WINDHOEK, July 5 — The Government has long disregarded the complaints of private media regarding the exclusion from government and parastatal advertising tenders, which are disproportionately awarded to government media and a select few private media houses, revealing a troubling pattern reminiscent of corrupt practices involving certain senior officials and specific media outlets that consistently benefit from government contracts.
Experts suggest that this unjust allocation of resources, which has persisted for quite some time, may have contributed to Namibia recently losing its previously held top position in Press Freedom to South Africa, dropping down to sixth place.
There are evident barriers between government operations and private media, which severely limit private entities from accessing government and parastatal advertising opportunities while their ongoing grievances remain neglected.
Certain media outlets have accused the government of ineffective communication and lack of coordination with all media organizations regarding government matters.
“For instance, how can someone hold the position of Minister of Information for a decade, which amounts to 3,650 days, yet fail to schedule a single meeting with media organizations to discuss their perspectives or concerns?” stated an editor from a private media outlet, speaking anonymously due to lack of authority to represent the media house.
“The level of coordination in South Africa regarding public information dissemination, especially during national events, is excellent; cameras don’t oppose each other as they do in Namibia. The South African National Broadcasting can capture the footage and subsequently share the links with all media,” he continued.
Additionally, he commended NBC’s coverage during national events, such as state funerals, while emphasizing the importance of sharing this coverage with private media for cohesive and high-quality reporting to the public, given that they are funded by taxpayers.
The outgoing Media Ombudsman, John Nakuta, was recently cited by Confidante newspaper acknowledging that smaller media organizations are struggling to stay afloat despite their significant contributions to ongoing public discourse.
“This is an appeal for the government to ensure that the distribution of advertising funding is done more fairly, so as to encompass privately-owned media. This is essential for maintaining a diverse media landscape in Namibia,” Nakuta stated.
Some believe that the lack of regulation regarding how the government manages media contracts presents substantial opportunities for corruption among certain senior government officials and specific media outlets.
Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare was also quoted in the same Confidante article, affirming that the government must fully support Namibian enterprises to prevent the loss of vital jobs abroad. Namibia Daily News, which is a fully owned Namibian company and one of the seven accredited private media organizations facing difficulties securing government contracts, attempted to reach Minister of Information and Communication Technology Emma Theofelus for comment before publication, but her mobile phone remained unanswered-Namibia Daily News
