MCK says its behind debate team idea

The Media Council of Kenya (MCK) says it is the co-convenor and member to both the presidential debates secretariat and local media debates working group where both logistical and financial resources have been dedicated.

The statement comes in the wake of media professionals stating that the role of planning and executing political debates should be left to the media after a committee was appointed to co-ordinate local language debates.

In a statement Thursday, MCK Chief Executive Officer David Omwoyo says the council received requests from several media associations and professional groups to assist in organising local language debates for gubernatorial, senatorial and women representative debates.

Omwoyo said, MCK requested some of them to nominate persons to sit in a technical group to coordinate themselves and approached other interest groups and individuals to join the initiative.

“It is worth noting that more than 200 radios and television stations and digital media outlets though legally recognised by MCK are not members of the Editors Guild or the Media Owners Association are therefore not part of the national debates,” he said.

Sammy Muraya was appointed to chair the Technical Working Group and will be deputised by Phyllis Wakiaga while Members of the Group are Jonah Ngari, Roly Davila, Stephen Kagongo, Simaloi Dajom, Rose Wakio, Leo Mutisya, Susan Karago, Joel Karanja, Vincent Ateya, Kevin Nyangweso, Tom Mboya, Joseph Kipkoech and Martin Maasai.

“In furtherance of its mandate as guided by Subsection 5(2) of the MCK Act and to allow it to draw from public funds to support this initiative, the Council wrote to the Cabinet Secretary for ICT, Innovation and Youth Affairs on March 7, 22, forwarding names from a cross-section of the media landscape and requesting for gazettement of the same. This was eventually done vide Kenya Gazette 3833 of April 8, 2022. The Cabinet Secretary did not alter the list forwarded to his office,” he added.

He said preparations for the debates are at an advanced stage and the secretariat meets regularly in the MCK boardroom to plan for the same.

“In order to promote citizen participation, democracy and issue-based election campaigns, the Media Council of Kenya, the Media Owners Association (MOA) and the Kenya Editors’ Guild (KEG) launched a steering committee for the Presidential and Running Mate debates on March 2, 2022. A secretariat headed by Mr Clifford Machoka of Nation Media Group, Mr Leo Mutisya of the Media Council of Kenya and Ms Rosalia Omungo of Kenya Editors’ Guild was also launched,” said Omwoyo.

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He said in the MCK election preparedness work plan, supported and funded by the government and other local and international partners, MCK seeks to undertake several activities to support the sector through various stakeholders and approaches including support to the Presidential and Running Mates debates and local based debates through county-based media outlets on Governorship, Senatorial and Woman representative debates.

He noted that none of the institutions they work with have attempted to interfere with the independence of the MCK or indeed the Media Complaints Commission.

“Pursuant to its mandate as an independent regulator established by an Act of Parliament, MCK works closely and is guided by several laws and institutions established by the Constitution of Kenya among them the Ministry of ICT, through which the Council reports to the National Assembly and other oversight bodies. None of these public institutions have attempted to interfere with the independence of the MCK or indeed the Media Complaints Commission,”

Adding that the council remains committed to working closely with and bringing together industry stakeholders to promote press freedom and to ensure professionalism in reportage of matters of national interest.

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