Milisa Kentane (in her private capacity)

I think a lot has been said of the National and Provincial Election 2019 winners, losers, missing ballot boxes, new parties and confused parties.

With the seat and percentage drop of traditional parties and new parties getting a surprising (or not so surprising) number of voter support. This begs the question, is South Africa looking at a coalition government? Historically, one agrees that “post-electoral alliances between opposition parties do not leverage changes in who governs” Booysen, S. Volume 13 No 1, causes and impact of party alliances and coalitions on the party system and national cohesion in South Africa. However, that is history, going forward (in my non‐expert opinion) we may not have a choice, if these elections are anything to go by.

Of issues of independent candidates and to my absolute dismay, independent candidates didn’t win the court application to participate in the national and provincial elections. They cited Section 19(3)(b) of the Constitution, however, according to Polity.org Desai said, “Nowhere in the wording of the section does it expressly state that standing for office must include standing for such office as an independent candidate.” The independent option is that they are not restricted to a single party’s policies but can support what they view is best for the successful governance of the country, party aside.

Watching some of the interviews with citizens voting on loyalty and familiarity, one realises that the independents wouldn’t have stood a chance anyway.

That said, what alternatives are there besides the traditional parties? The drop in voter registration and turn up at the voting stations, one can deduce that there is some voter lethargy. It wasn’t just the weather.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Telecommunication and Information Society Day, celebrated on 17 May 2019. Telecommunication has been the backbone of the broadcasting space and continues to be critical to an information society. A democratic state cannot exist without an informed citizenship. The transmission of information through “the airwaves speaks to the freedom of expression and accesses to information and the transparency we fiercely advocate for.”

“The purpose of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD) is to help raise awareness of the possibilities that the use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) can bring to societies and economies, as well as of ways to bridge the digital divide.” ‐ www.gov.za/TelecommunicationDay2019

Journalist remain the guardians of a transparent and informed society. President Ramaphosa said, “I also wish to thank the media, which continues to play a vital role in our democracy and which was important in ensuring that South African people were well informed as they went to vote”. It is important to remain cognisant of the fact that telecommunication played a huge role in ensuring that informed society and journalist should be actively involved on issues pertaining to telecommunications and broadcasting.

According to the World Telecommunications Union (ITU) The Day marks the founding of ITU on 17 May 1865 when the first International Telegraph Convention was signed in Paris. Telecommunication and technology have changed.

When the world started talking globalization and global communities, it was on the realization that technology linked international communities, providing the ability to share information faster to a broader audience. This has allowed greater leaning opportunities and knowledge sharing, improving decision making from an informed perspective.

Ntando Makhubu, Chairperson of the National Press Club, touched on information society during her interview with Media Monitor. She expressed that both journalists and communicators want to share information without barriers or fear, echoing one of the objectives of and the need for Telecommunications and Information Society Day.

The National Press Club has elected its new executive committee and management team. Ntando Makhubu, news editor of the Pretoria News, has been elected chairperson of the National Press Club, making her the first black female to be elected to this position. We asked her a few questions.

Ntando is the news editor of the Pretoria News, with over 10 years working experience in the SA media world. She arrived in Pretoria from the Eastern Cape in 2011, where she worked as a reporter for the Daily Dispatch. Working in journalism is a passion of hers, and so joining the Press Club was a natural step when she arrived in the city, and, since then, her understanding and appreciation of the relations between stakeholders and media practitioners has only grown. She is a mother of two and find that motherhood is quiet like juggling journalism ‐ they both need resilience, love, passion and patience.

Do you have any specific plans or objectives for the NPC?

I would like to, with the support of the exco and membership, foster stronger relations between journalists and the people they depend on for their livelihood, namely the employers, the communities and, of course, government. The wall dividing the craft we do and those who we depend on must be broken down.

Why should journalists and PR’s join the NPC?

Membership of this club is not just for socialising and networking ‐ although that is a helpful aspect of the platform we offer, but it gives front seat access to the newsmakers, to the informers, decision makers and, of course, the media who carry information from one portal to the other.