A rethink on Communications Act urgently required

Ever since the Kenya Communications (Amendment Bill) 2008 was passed in Parliament, media practitioners have variously pointed out that the law is ambiguous and cumbersome to the extent that it brings under one statute very different matters of communication.

The media’s trepidation with the Bill (now an Act) is borne of the fact that among others it gives the Minister of Information awesome and unchecked powers over the media and, being a politician, the issue of impartiality obviously comes into focus.

The media have consistently argued that it is not against regulation per se, pointing out that there exists the Media Council which is legally mandated to deal with issues raised against the media.

However, and even though President Kibaki has signed the bill into law, there still exists an opportunity to repeal this piece of legislation that has been widely regarded as retrogressive.

FIRST, IT IS IMPORTANT TO APPRECIate that when the bill was passed by Parliament in December last year, the relations between the media and Members of Parliament were frosty.

Against a background of public outcry over MPs’ refusal to have their allowances taxed, the legislators were of the view that the media were inciting Kenyans against them.

The coming of the bill to the House was therefore an appropriate opportunity to punish a media MPs considered intransigent.

Sufficient time has since passed and hopefully, Parliamentarians have had the time to reflect more soberly on what the bill portends not only for the media but also the threat it poses to the existence of a truly democratic nation.

We make reference to Parliament because other than challenging the constitutionality of the bill in courts of law, the most promising avenue towards amending or repealing the law altogether remains the August House itself.

This can happen through a Parliamentary Committee on Communications which can push for supplementary amendments on clauses that have put the freedom of the media in jeopardy.

It can also be done through the Attorney General’s Chambers, by placing before Parliament a bill seeking a constitutional amendment.

Secondly, there were voices of reason in the rank and file of MPs who were of the opinion that the bill contained clauses that would clearly militate against media operations, curtail the freedom of expression and ultimately the right to information.

Individual legislators who expressed their concerns regarding the bill include Prime Minister Raila Odinga and ministers Mutula Kilonzo and James Orengo.

Being influential leaders, the three gentlemen and like-minded legislators are duty-bound to guide Parliament in finding ways of amending this law into a statute that all parties can live with.

The media feel, and rightly so, that certain sections in the Kenya Communications (Amendment) Act, 2008 contravene the Constitution.

We have in mind Section 79(1) which states, inter alia, that “no person shall be hindered in the enjoyment of his freedom of expression, freedom to receive ideas and information without interference, freedom to communicate ideas and information without interference.”

Clearly, a rethink on this Act is called for.