Media council protests after Roba locked out journalists from BBI event
By Alvin Mwangi
The Media Council of Kenya (MCK) has petitioned the Mandera County government over denying journalists access to events.
In a statement sent to Mandera Governor Ali Roba on Monday, MCK said it received complaints from journalists based at the county who said that they have been facing obstacles accessing his office and other senior officials when seeking information on stories.
The Mandera Journalists Association accused the governor of locking them out of a public function on the Building Bridges Initiative last week.
"The council protests in the strongest terms possible the act of blocking journalists from public events and denial of information which they are entitled to in executing their duties. The council also wishes to bring into your attention the fact that access to information by journalists is a constitutional right guaranteed by the constitution under article 35,” a statement from MCK Chief Executive Officer David Omwoyo read.
Omwoyo also put the county on notice against engaging in any action that can end up harming journalists while in line duty.
He said that the county should have in place alternative ways to resolve disputes the Mandera administration has against journalists.
