PARLIAMENTARY DISCUSSIONS LIVE ON RADIO

With Gerald Lumanyika

Tanzanian government is expecting to broadcast live coverage of parliamentary discussions on radio stations with in the country.

Various elites within the government and journalists were able to go for a meeting in Dodoma where the parliament is based in order to get that permission.

Minister of information, tradition, arts and sports Mr. Nape Nnauye told journalists yesterday on the opening ceremony of Community radio media network of Tanzania studios in Dar es Salaam Open University.

“This will help even to reduce on the costs that were incurred by radio stations previously that they had to go with their machines to Dodoma for alive coverage which was not easy especially to community radios” Nape said willingly.

Nape promised the congregation and talked about peoples’ right to have information which is relevant to our community as Tanzanians.

He even said that the government will have to sit in a parliamentary discussion and issue such plan for the best of the nation at large.

But the minister also pleaded for journalists to beware of sedition which can hinder the lives and peace prevailing in Tanzania.

The minister continued to say about the relevance of this community radio studio on how it’s beneficial in boosting democracy plus even training students who are studying mass communication.

The representative of United Nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (UNESCO) Zulmira Rodriguez who attended the event said that this organization is happy on how community radios are progressing.

Zulmira Rodriguez thanked the government on how they have inspired such radio stations and this was seen during the past election.

“We would like also the government to give a hand to such radio stations as we (UNESCO) are providing much help to them” Zulmira Rodriguez added.

Recently the government scrapped off live coverage of parliamentary discussions on the National television station saying that it incurs a lot of unnecessary costs, this was followed by closing up of some media houses that were accused of sedition.