Jokonya makes sweeping changes at ZBH

Jokonya makes sweeping changes at ZBH

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By Lebo Nkatazo

ZIMBABWE'S public broadcaster is undergoing its second major restructuring in just four years as the government battles to reverse changes effected by former Information Minister, Professor Jonathan Moyo.

On Tuesday, Zimbabwe's new Information Minister Tichaona Jokonya, not keen to criticise his predecessor, hailed him as a "bright man", but said his sweeping changes were unsustainable.

Moyo put in motion a sweeping revolution at the public broadcaster by unbundling the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) into nine companies, all run by the parent company, the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings (ZBH).

The nine companies were Power FM, Spot FM, On Air Systems, Zimbabwe Television, Radio Zimbabwe, National FM, Newsnet, Sportnet and Transmedia.

However, after Moyo was fired from the government, President Robert Mugabe's spokesman George Charamba immediately told ZBH bosses that he would be working on a plan to reverse some of Moyo's changes.

Charamba also halted all work on Moyo's stillborn project of introducing the National Broadcasting Corporation -- a 24 hour television channel.

Under Jokonya's new plan, thought to include job cuts, all the companies will be merged into Zimbabwe Television Services and Radio Services.

The companies will have a board of directors, a group CEO and two managing directors for television and radio.

Jokonya would not give estimates on how many jobs may be lost. However, he said positions could be created in his ministry to absorb the staff who lose jobs.

Jokonya told a press conference: "Moyo is a bright man, but he created nine companies and put no money into those companies.

"I am not going to speculate on the fall out. My feelings are that we are not going to lose too much people."

Jokonya said non-performing staff would be fired, but observed that the salaries of journalists at the state broadcaster were in need of serious review.

The troubled state broadcaster has acknowledged in recent months that it is facing financial problems. Although the government still owns the main stake, it partially privatised the formally wholly state-owned Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation.

The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport and Communications urged the government in a recent report to streamline most state-owned media organisations to ensure efficiency.

In said in its report: "The Committee was not impressed by what it saw at the ZBH. Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings now employs a lot of inexperienced and unqualified staff, which is reflecting badly on the organisation's image and is compromising the provision of quality."
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