African press review 8 January 2015

In today's African press review, Kenya is banning preachers and sex talks from its televisions, while a teacher is convicted of radicalising children. In South African, a journalist tackles racism in a letter and in Uganda, the president wonders whether or not to attend a presidential public debate.

DR

Kenya is introducing a new set of rules concerning radio and television. You'll find that story in today's Standard.

The Communications Authority of Kenya has apparently banned a few things, including so-called "seed preachers" and daytime sex talk. The preachers, explains the newspaper, were notorious for asking for money in exchange for blessings and prayers on TV and radio.

"This will be seen as punitive for TV and radio which depend on call-in shows," says The Standard.

There are a few measures that make sense in the new code, it says: for example, the fact that "journalists, anchors and presenters will no longer be able to voice audio commercials or appear in online commercials".

Television will also soon no longer be able to air more than 14 minutes of ads per hour.

There really are a lot of new rules, and some are more dubious than others, it says. The government body has also banned " television commercials that are likely to ‘corrupt’ the morals of young children".

Speaking of Kenya, a teacher was sentenced to 20 years in jail there, according to regional paper The East African.

The Kenyan teacher was convicted of radicalising primary school children in Kilifi county.

"Samuel Wanjala Wabwile was accused of promoting extreme jihadism including violence [...] by teaching children to fight at a mosque where he was an imam," writes the paper.

This, of course, takes place as the country cracks down against terrorism and armed-group al-Shebab.

Uganda is preparing for its presidential election and according to the Daily Monitor, there's still uncertainty over whether President Yoweri Museveni will show up for the first round of presidential debates set for next Friday.

Museveni, in power since 1986, has been challenged to a debate by the Forum for Democratic Change's Kizza Besigye and Go Forward's Amam Mbabazi.

The head of state, however, has remained "non-committal" on confirming attendance, according to the Monitor. Museveni is the given winner of the elections, which could explain why he might pass on those debates.

Finally The Independent Online has a letter about racism.

The letter by Andiswa Makanda, a journalist, is an answer to realtor Penny Sparrow who shocked the country by calling black people on Durban beaches monkeys.

"I read all of your posts with a heavy heart and great sadness. You are privileged yet your ignorance makes you poor," writes Makanda.

The journalist takes on the racists comments head-on and talks about her experience as a black woman growing up in South Africa. She explains how "for many years the beach has been socially inaccessible", and how for the black working class it is seen as an escape.

"Beaches do not belong to a certain race or class. It is enough that education and economic activities remain inaccessible for the majority of black people," she concludes.