adminKennedy Mavhumashava
THE Government is considering a review of the policy on mandatory blending of petrol with ethanol that is being produced by Green Fuel at Chisumbanje in Chipinge, a Cabinet Minister said yesterday.
Responding to a question after delivering a public lecture at the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) in Bulawayo, the Minister of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services, Professor Jonathan Moyo, said the Government is responsive to complaints that some motorists are raising that use of petrol blended with ethanol at the 10 percent ratio, with plans to increase it to 20 percent early next year, could damage the engines of their vehicles.
“We haven’t been faced with this blended issue as a policy, new policy and so forth,” he said.
“But from what you say and if all what you say is true, just rationally thinking it sounds true. We need to subject that policy to review and refine it so that it doesn’t make us laughing stock.”
He likened the implementation of the mandatory blending policy to a situation where someone is told how useful a hammer is on driving nails on furniture and the person proceeds to use the tool on a glass table.
“We don’t need to do that,” Prof Moyo said.
“We need to listen to experience that people have with the product out there and do the right thing and I think people would rather see a responsive government. The idea that people can make a mistake is ok but when the mistake is made what people expect, is its correction and that to me sounds like something that rational people would have to take a second look at.”
He delivered the guest lecture at the university’s Department of Journalism and Media Studies on the topic “The Future of the Media in Zimbabwe.” The lecture series is part of Nust’s 20th anniversary celebrations. Scores of students, their lecturers and non-academic staff as well as staff from his ministry, attended it.
Green Fuel is a joint venture between the Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (Arda) and Macdom Investments and Rating Investments. The petroleum sector started providing blended petrol at the ratio of five percent anhydrous ethanol to 95 percent petrol a few months ago before the ratio was improved to 10 percent ethanol on October 15. By the end of this month, the blending ratio should have gone up to 15 percent and 20 percent by end of March next year.
Speaking on the country’s preparedness to migrate from analogue to digital broadcasting, Prof Moyo said Zimbabwe would miss the Sadc deadline of next month but would meet the International Telecommunication Union deadline of June 2015. Between $26 and 30 million is required to fund the digitalisation programme. Of Transmedia’s 48 transmitters, only 10 are digitalised. He said the Government was committed to expanding the presence of broadcasting stations beyond Harare adding that community radio stations that are likely to be licensed soon would help in achieving that goal.
“Because of digitalisation, we will have four television frequencies; each will carry 20 services, so the potential is 80 television stations,” he said.
“We will have a capacity for 80 but we might not have 80 television stations because that depends on frequency plans and because of economic viability. There are many platforms coming up to give opportunities to new players. But we cannot grab everything, so out of the 80; some will be preserved for future generations.”
Pursuant to the digitalisation agenda, Prof Moyo said there would be a requirement for applicants for new radio and television licences to prove that they are digital-ready.
He urged the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation to strengthen its capacity for real-time broadcasting as opposed to behaving “as if television was discovered yesterday.”
While the digital platforms have some positive aspects, he said, they also posed threats to national security.
“The correct disposition is we should be vigilant in protecting our national interests. There are some people who think that it is difficult to monitor (the new media). The notion that we don’t know who Baba Jukwa is, is not true. For everything done, there is a monitoring mechanism,” he said.
He criticised ZBC for using money raised through licence fees for purposes other than improving content saying the function of collecting them would soon be housed in a separate entity and money spent to benefit content producers.
Prof Moyo acknowledged that the Government has in recent years, struggled to provide funding for the development of the film sector because of economic challenges, but pledged that more support would be availed. It was impossible, he said, for a film industry to grow without government support hence the commitment for sustained public support for the sector.
On community radio stations, Prof Moyo said BAZ assured his ministry at a recent meeting that a policy and legal framework would be out soon, paving the way for the authority to invite applications for licences.
“But we have not seen communities seeking community radio licences. We are not working on a policy for individuals who call themselves communities but a policy for communities. We have got to be very serious that if it’s a community radio it must be truly a community radio not Jonathan Moyo pretending to be Tsholotsho,” he said.
He decried gender imbalances in the media sector, but said it was the responsibility of respective media outlets to ensure more equitable presence of women and men at all levels from boards, to management and professional ranks.
After the lecture, Prof Moyo toured the department’s broadcasting studio set up a few months ago with support from Unesco. He was told that for the studio, which is fully digitalised, to function optimally there was a need for more furniture, air conditioning, professional field cameras, among other requirements. He said he and his deputy, Cde Supa Mandiwanzira have been visiting media houses throughout the country and have finished with the broadcast sector and are left with two newspapers.
The focus is now shifting to training institutions like Nust. He said the studio was impressive with state-of-the-art equipment. He pledged that his ministry would facilitate the acquisition of the equipment needed at the studio. Lecturers and students said they are looking forward to the department being awarded a licence under the community radio category.
The minister said the Broadcasting Services Act provides for narrow-casting which is ideal for unique, closed communities such as universities so the department might stand a chance of getting a licence.
Online Reporter
Londile Moyo