STATE OF THE MEDIA IN ZAMBIA STATE OF THE MEDIA IN ZAMBIA His justification for the move was that government wanted to ensure that caution is taken especially on security matters before the bill is enacted into law. Mr. Kasolo added that the bill will adequately be prepared so that there are no lacunas. The PS’s statement came before the Bill was presented to Cabinet and stakeholders cast doubt on the process owing to the flip-flopping stance taken by government. The year 2020, closed minus having the enactment of the bill into law even though on 15th April 2019, The Times of Zambia publication carried a headline, “Government to table ATI Bill soon.” It was reported that government had assured the public that the long awaited Access to Information (ATI) Bill was to be tabled in the next sitting of parliament which was scheduled to resume in June, 2020. The sentiments covered in the newspaper were attributed to Information and Broadcasting Services Minister Dora Siliya who said the ATI bill, which had been approved by cabinet, was currently undergoing refinement before presentation to parliament. The Minister further stated that there were misconceptions about the ATI Bill as some sections of society thought the proposed law was meant for journalists when in reality it would cater for the general public. Meanwhile, rhetoric from the government side has continued with top government officials passing pronouncements for the enactment of the bill into law with no enactment in sight. 4.1.3. Media Regulation The media in the period under review was dominated by debates around the statutory self-media regulation. Earlier in the year 2019, calls to regulate the media rung strong with government calling upon the media to consider a law to allow for the fraternity to regulate itself for professional recognition. The calls came at a time when the media in Zambia was said to have a lot of media practitioners without a media background. These views were shared by the then Information Permanent Secretary Mr. Chanda Kasolo on 18th March who was quoted in the Zambia Daily Mail newspaper saying, “quacks undermining journalism.” The Permanent Secretary (PS) further stated that, “we have professions like accountants and lawyers whom we respect, so why should the case be different for the journalists? We need to bring sanity to the profession.” 10