FortySouth

The Universal Service Fund (USF) was established by the recently passed Kenya Communications Amendment Act 2008 and, while promising in theory, it seems to be rather thin on the details of its implementation.

Where a lack of clarity on the issues exists, the Law could be prone to misrepresentation and abuse.

What can be gleaned from the Act? Continue reading

The Kenya Communications (Amendment) Bill, and by extension the Amendment Act, 2008 has for a while variously been misrepresented as the “Media Bill”. In fact, there is a Media Act contained in the Constitution, passed in 2007.

In Brief

The Act mainly establishes the Media Council of Kenya. It describes its membership, functions and powers. Within the Council, a Complaints Commission is established which deals with filed complaints against media entities.

What does it stipulate? Continue reading

The Nation figures the Government is slowly getting cornered between a rock (loss of political capital, amid talk of 2012) and a hard place (bad press locally and internationally).

I tend to think it’s more the latter. Many internationally syndicated columnists simply drank the Kool-Aid of media-muzzling wrought by some disingenuous local reporters, before doing some fact-checking, hence the bad rap the Government has got for championing the Kenya Communications (Amendment) Act 2008. The Information Minister Poghisio and his PS Ndemo seemed genuinely surprised at the push back on the Act, like they’d been hit by a bus and now wondering what just happened. The Government Spokesman is peeved.

The Act has gone through the last stage in the legislative process, date of Commencement – January 2nd, 2009, but it has not yet been gazetted according to the latest release. The AG & Co. are asking for another memorandum from the Media Owners Association & Co. on what’s itching them on the two Acts.

What I’m wondering is what was contained in the original memo handed to Kibaki on MOA’s behalf by the Prime Minister sometime in December before he assented to the Bill?