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Tafara Shumba Correspondent
I had an opportunity this week to attend some public inquiries of applicants for free-to-air local commercial radio licences.
The Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ), in line with Section 40A of the Broadcasting Services Act, held public interviews to determine the suitability of the applicants to be licensed.

There has been a long-drawn-out debate and violent demands for the deregulation of the airwaves since the late 80s.

Government has been accused of impeding the full enjoyment of people’s rights to freedom of expression, access to information and media freedom as expressed in the national Constitution and other international conventions on human and people’s rights.

Government has been citing the analogue system as the major hindrance to the opening up of the airwaves.

The airspace could not be opened up due to the limitations in the broadcasting spectrum allocated by the International Telecommunications Union.

Now that the nation is migrating to digitalisation, more radio stations can be accommodated.

Current efforts to license more players in the broadcasting sector ahead of the ITU 2015 deadline for all broadcasting to go digital, really vindicate Government, which has been misconstrued as enjoying the broadcasting monopoly. The analogue excuse was sincere.

Zimbabwe should be congratulated for joining other progressive nations on the continent that have since opened up their airwaves.

BAZ initially intended to license 25 free-to-air local commercial radio stations.

However, the authority received only 21 applications, of which only 18 demonstrated a modicum of seriousness.

Of the 18 which were shortlisted, six failed to pay the US$7 500 public inquiry fees, leaving only 12 in the race.

This leaves one to conclude that the hullaballoo and campaigns for the deregulation of the airspace were not sincere.

Even the pirate radio stations that are illegally broadcasting from outside the country could not seize the opportunity despite a generous invitation extended to them.

There must be some sinister reasons to explain the spurning of such an invitation. The pirate radio stations prefer to continue operating clandestinely for they do it unethically without being legally held accountable. They promote hate speech, sow seeds of disunity and thrive on slander.

During the public interviews, the applicants gave some sugar-coated responses. They spoke glowingly about sovereignty, indigenisation and other Government policies that have been widely attacked in the opposition-linked media. Some of the statements uttered were simply incredible, more so coming from known vicious critics of the Government. Could that be the beginning of a paradigm shift?

The Shona are not short of a counsel for a wolf in a sheep’s clothing. “Rinonyenga rinohwarara rinosimudza musoro rawana”, they say. This is exactly what some of the applicants seek to do. However, the public cannot be fooled, for the true colours of these applicants’ are reflected in their other media projects.

Their objectives are already on the postcard. The objectives they have been advancing through other media forms are the same that they intend to perpetuate electronically. Notwithstanding how much you wash an eagle, it will never change its colour.

This is not a lobby to have radio stations that are ever subservient to the Government. The media should objectively play its watchdog role. Radio is key to national development and it is the type of the radio station that can add value to Zimbabwe.

There must be a complete departure from the manner the print media operates. The print media have been blighted by polarisation. Divisive party politics and propaganda have been unduly accorded acres of space at the expense of other equally important issues. As commercial radio stations, they must be aware that they cannot make money out of party politics.

For them to be viable, the economic environment must be conducive. The media helped to destroy this environment and they have gravely affected the country’s standing on the global economy. The new entrants must spruce up the image of the country. They have a task of replacing the old image of Zimbabwe created by their counterparts with one that they will truthfully generate.

The prospective broadcasters must be guided by the principal roles of the media, which are to educate, inform and entertain.

It’s known that they want to make money out of these projects but they must make it in the context of these traditional roles.

While the applicants’ presentations were mostly impressive, the financial part in most of them left a lot to be desired. The applicants failed to prove that they had the funds that will sustain their projects. BAZ must license people with proven capacity.

It pains to see young journalists, having been given hope that they are employed today, only to be sent back into streets after the radio station has folded in its infancy.