By Guardian Reporter , The Guardian
CHRONIC government debts to various media outlets have greatly affected media development, the legislature was told yesterday.
Elibariki Kingu (Singida West) said, referring to reports that the government owes the media a total of 19bn/- piling up for over seven years at present, with many media companies having a harrowing time.
The tough condition makes life for their staff even harder, even turning them into beggars, he said, contributing to debate on the Information, Communication and Information Technology budget estimates for fiscal 2024/25 yesterday.
MPs urged that the government clear the debts to enable the industry to grow, referred to a study conducted in 2017 affirming that media stations by up to 80 to 85 percent depend on government expenditure to make ends meet.
Insisting that the concern is of good intention, they said that there is no way that media stations can grow and fulfil their obligation if they are grossly short of the funds they need, so government spending in advertisements stimulates media development.
MPs urged the Treasury to pay the media the relevant amounts to facilitate their growth, as the owed amount was far too high. It prevents the media from engaging in reporting or evaluation work that demands time and spot visits, holding back a vital contribution to transparency and feedback on development efforts.
Esther Bulaya (Special Seats-Opposition) asked that the government set aside at least 0.3 percent of the annual budget to pay media debts.
For media companies to grow and execute their functions effectively, the government needs to pay them as their staff needs to be paid, while media organs need funds for general operations, she said.
Many media companies fail to submit employees’ contributions to social security funds due to the hard situation arising from the government failing to pay their debts on time, she stated, while Erick Shigongo (Buchosa) said the current situation within media companies pushes scores of media companies to extinction. Without media there is no development, so government institutions need to ensure they coordinate their actions such that they contribute to the development of media firms by paying out overdue debts.
Responding to the concerns, minister Nape Nnauye promised to supervise to ensure that the debts are paid, also acknowledging MPs’ advice on what the government can do to start providing subsidies to media agencies.
He assured media practitioners unwavering support from the government, asking them not to worry as the government recognises the challenges they face, emphasizing that all valid claims will be settled.
Higher levels of the government had already issued instructions on this matter and the ministry is working to supervise to ensure that all the debts are cleared. “I will act hard on all institutions which will be found intentionally delaying the payments,” he vowed.
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