MPs push to have journalists kicked out from covering House proceedings, cite poor dresscode, misreporting of news
Some members of the National Assembly have proposed to have journalists kicked out from covering House proceedings over allegations of poor dress code and misreporting of news.
Speaking in Mombasa yesterday during the National Assembly Members Seminar, MPs led by Westlands legislator Timothy Wanyonyi, his Kitui South and Naivasha counterparts Rachel Nyamai and Jane Kihara, questioned the importance of having journalists at the Parliament accusing them of failure to cover important House business and being poorly dressed.
“Was it a good idea to have a media centre at Parliament and yet there is still misinformation coming from there? These journalists do not sometimes even sit there and follow proceedings,” Wanyonyi said.
“And we have realised there seems to be a gap between the way Parliament conducts itself in terms of the way people dress and the big team of journalists that we have. Is there a way we can have a conversation so that they can up their game especially on the matters of how they appear?” Nyamai posed.
Other MPs who echoed their sentiments include Dagoretti South MP John Kiarie, Kathiani MP Robert Mbui and their Konoin counterpart Florence Jemutiah.
However, the lawmakers’ sentiments have caused an uproar among Parliamentary Journalists.
Journalists led by Chairperson of the Kenyan Parliamentary Journalists Association (KPJA) Duncan Khaemba and Citizen TV’s Senior Political and Parliamentary Journalist Steve Letoo condemned the remarks saying they will not allow the rights of journalists to be infringed.
They vowed to continue with their role as the public watchdog without favour or fear of intimidation.
“What Members of Parliament and especially those in the National Assembly need to understand is that the media exists to serve primarily public interests. It is therefore unfortunate if they choose to attack the media probably because they feel they are not getting prominence in coverage,” Khaemba said.
“They also need to know that media houses are guided by editorial policies which at the end of the day dictate what will be published or aired.”
The lawmakers’ view follows media reports of how they squandered millions of shillings in seminars in top hotels in Mombasa at taxpayers’ expense despite the deteriorating economy situation in the country.
