Media Owners Association decries harassment by government agencies

Media Owners Association plans to sue Kenya Film Classification Board, saying it has no jurisdiction to regulate programs and advertisements.

The association held its annual general meeting on Wednesday to discuss issues affecting the industry.

Members discussed cases of increased and adverse regulatory environment and duplication of oversight by Government agencies, which is resulting in the infringement of the freedom of the press and expression.

They also noted that the Government owes massive amounts of money to the media houses accrued from advertising which would result in not only violating the freedom of the press but also have significant impact on the commercial aspects of media business.

In a press statement, the association noted the affront by Kenya Film Classification Board which has no jurisdiction to regulate programs and advertisements and indicated that it is considering legal action to contest the Board’s activities should they persist to act beyond their mandate.

The Media Owners Association also reappointed Dr. Hanningtone Gaya from Media 7 Magazines as Chairman for a second term. Other officials reappointed include the Vice- Chairman, Julius Lamaon (Kass Group), the Secretary, David Kimotho (Three Stones TV), Treasurer, Cyrus Kamau (Capital Group Limited), Organising Secretary, Francis Munywoki (Standard Group).

The Executive Committee of the Association will comprise of Joe Muganda (Nation Media Group), Sam Shollei (Standard Group), Kiprono Kittony (Radio Africa), Wachira Waruru (Royal Media Services), Joshua Chepkwony (Kass), William Pike (Radio Africa), Rose Kimotho (Three Stones), Ian Fernandes (MediaMax) and Tom Mshindi (Nation).

The Chief Executive Officer, Lynette Mwangi, who was appointed earlier in the year to help streamline operations of the Association, was introduced to the membership and she pledged to work with the Chairman and members to fulfill the mandate of the Association.

“The Association will continue to advocate for freedom of the press and protect the business interests of media owners by monitoring the political, legal and economic environment, addressing concerns of media owners by responding to recurring potential threats and participating in policy making processes to validate industry position on media issues.”