Some Members of the National Assembly have revived the push to kick out journalists from covering House proceedings due to a myriad of issues, including what they termed as a poor dress code and misreporting of the news.
This follows media reports of how they splurged millions of shillings in seminars in top hotels in Mombasa despite calls for austerity.
The 349-strong National Assembly flew to Mombasa, booked themselves into a beach hotel for a week at taxpayers’ expense, but boycotted the induction workshop that took them there to protest delays in the disbursement of constituency development funds.
Kitui South MP Rachael Nyamai yesterday singled out young journalists with poor dress codes, calling on the National Assembly to reign in on them. She spoke at the ongoing National Assembly Post-Election Seminar at the Prideinn Paradise Resort, in Mombasa County.
“There seems to be a gap between the way Parliament conducts itself in terms of the way people dress and the big team of journalists that we have. Is there a way that we can have a conversation with our leadership? This is especially with the young journalists who can up their game on their appearance because it’s a big concern,” said Ms Nyamai.
She defended her remarks, saying, she was only insisting that Parliament has respectable people, including parents.
Media Council of Kenya CEO David Omwoyo assured the MPs he would pass the message to media houses, saying, even State House has a dress code.
Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi queried the essence of “a media-centred parliament”, saying, journalists do not cover their proceedings objectively.
“There is a disconnect between what happens in Parliament and what they report, you would think they are reporting from somewhere else,“ said Mr Wanyonyi.
Nation Media Group Planning and Research Editor, and former chair of Kenya Parliamentary Journalists Association Ms Roselynne Obala condemned the MPs for accusing journalists of dressing poorly.
“There are laid down rules globally in Parliament on dress codes. Parliament has orderlies at the gate who, if you are not dressed properly, will not allow you access not only for a journalist but even MPs. I have never heard any MP raising a concern about how a journalist dresses. This is a witch-hunt,” said Ms Obala.
She urged the MPs to address their concerns using the right channels, including the Kenya Parliamentary Journalists Association, which works closely with parliamentary leaders.
“Going to a retreat and bashing the media is uncouth. Parliament is a public institution that any Kenyan is allowed to access,” she added. Ms Obala said the politicians cannot control the information that they want the media to tell the public.
“Journalists are guided by the editorial policies of media houses. So when journalists come to a parliament they do it for the public interest,” she said.
