AfricaPress-Tanzania: JOURNALISTS have been urged to shift from their traditional way of reporting to playing their watchdog role, a shift that will enable them expose the rot in the government and community.
Zanzibar State House Director of Communications Hassan Khatib made the call on Friday at a meeting with reporters during which he said the eighth phase government under President Hussein Ali Mwinyi is promoting transparency and accountability.
He said although it was the duty of the media to report success stories of the government it was equally responsible for revealing flaws of government projects and also provide enough space for people’s grievances to be heard.
“You (journalists and the media) are now in a better position to practise responsible journalism to bring about social changes. Do not just report, but find out facts to report successfully, but also failed projects and people involved in the failure,” he said.
The media meeting was convened by the Planning Commission and the State House to explain to journalists about the implementation of 94 projects worth more than 600bn/-, but the media coverage about the projects has not been enough.
Mr Hassan said all government leaders from grassroots (shehas), local administration, regional commissioners and ministers had been directed by the President to provide information to the media and that there was nothing to be hidden.
He said some of the projects such as the famous ‘Zanzibar Urban Services Project (ZUSP)’ had a suspicious part of it, but the media did not go deep in reporting. “It is time to change, national development requires media support in reporting objectively on pressing social issues. Those involved in corruption and spoiling the projects and being part of the problems in the community must be held accountable.”
Head of the National Monitoring and Evaluation Unit – Planning Commission – Mr Hamid Abdall Haji said most of the 2020/21 projects were implemented with some still going on well, but mentioned challenges as a shortage of sand for construction, impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on transportation as some experts and materials were to be imported.
In response to a call for change and improve media coverage, a journalist, Ms Arafa Issa Haji, from Mtergani Community Radio Makunduchi, commended President Mwinyi for changes that need media cooperation.
“Journalists were not working well on their stories because sources from the government were reluctant to give information.”
