Union of Journalists of South Sudan or UJOSS Chairperson is urging the media authority of the country to work according to the law to move forward.
Oliver Modi says it is the law that directs the media authority in its work.
The Media Authority in South Sudan was established to oversee the media industry in terms of regulation, media development and care for the welfare of the journalists.
It is also expected to contribute to a vibrant, independent and pluralistic media in South Sudan, by controlling the increased rate of incidents affecting journalists, end impunity on crimes against media personnel and create conducive environment for media houses to operate in.
The Chairperson of UJOSS adds that there are borders within the media authority for each office to perform its role according to the prescribed duties.
Modi says the body needs to carry out its work according to the law so that the South Sudanese can enjoy its services.
‘The media authority should do its work as prescribed by the law because with law, you cannot just come with your things at home and you begin to apply. Each office in the media authority has borders with one another. So you find that office A has a border with B. So office A cannot play the role of office Z. Let us also lobby and make sure that other offices are established so that we make them functional. It is the role of the media authority to be creative so that it become self sustainable than expecting support from outside. So the media authority should work according to the law so that the people of South Sudan will enjoy its services’.
Modi comments on the work of the media authority, saying it is trying its level best despite the current situation in the country.
‘The media authority is trying its level best to be established though with a lot of challenges, but at least it is better to try than never to establish its self as an institution. That is what we are expecting from the media authority board after its establishment so that the media industry or structure should be complete because before the media authority was established, the media structure in South Sudan were incomplete”.
Director General, Media Authority, Sapana Abuyi says the body is to regulate the media so that it operates according to the law.
‘Media authority is a regulatory body established by the media authority act in 2013 to regulate the development of the media in South Sudan in the public interest. The media has to be controlled, not that it is censorship, but is a guiding policy that media authority always implies so that the media operates in an atmosphere that does not create conflict of interest and does not go out of context. So far, the media authority has been able to register good number of media houses’.
The officials were talking to CRN after two days training for journalists on the code of conduct.