FROM THE PUBLIC EDITOR'S DESK: Beware of con men posing as journalists

This is what happened a fortnight ago. The Public Editor received four calls from people who identified themselves as readers of products of Mwananchi Communications Limited (MCL) – The Citizen, Mwananchi and MwanaSpoti.

The first reader called on Tuesday. She introduced herself – name and where she was calling from. She wanted to know the cost of publishing information she was in possession of – about her employer.

“The text is about 15 hand-written paragraphs; but you people being experts could shorten it further. No! We must have it out at any cost. We cannot wait any longer,” she mumbled on phone. Before I could reply, she asked, “How much will that cost?”

The second caller identified himself as Bakari Mweledi of Tanga Municipality. He called on the following day – Wednesday. He said he had been holding information for months now and would not give it to anybody because he was told he has “to pay to have it published.”

“You see, some of us have a lot of connections and therefore have a lot of hot information that could be published and earn you more and more money. I already know how much it costs at two newspapers; now tell me how much you charge per half-page. I want to compare the costs,” he told me.

Two other readers called on the same and one day – Friday, but at different time. One Herman Obed identified himself as a school teacher in Dodoma municipality and the other refused to mention his name saying, “…just tell me what I want to know; my name is not important in this business.”

Obed told me he has a lot of information about the government hospital and University of Dodoma (UDOM) which he has failed to give out to reporters. “The other day I was told to pay Sh150,000 to the reporter to have the story published. I then asked myself, ‘for what reason?’”Like the other two, Obed wants to know if one has to pay any money to have information published.

And with the one who refused to reveal his name, here was the game:

PE: What actually did you want to convey?

Nameless: That is not your business; just tell me whether you charge for information brought to you by a good citizen.

PE: No. We don’t charge anything; we don’t charge any money.

Nameless: OK! They can’t fool us anymore.

The four callers remind me of two “freelance journalists” in Arusha who presented themselves to one family split by disputes, as correspondents of Mwananchi and took from the family the sum of Sh200,000 in order to have its information published in the paper and aired on radio and TV.”

It is after the two young men failed to execute the plan (or had done away with their problem), the family reported the matter to the PE. When I explained to the family that our products do not demand any money for publication of information in form of a story, they confronted the masqueraders and demanded back their money.

The freelancers have since returned to the family only Sh100,000. When I suggested to the family that the two be arrested and arraigned, the daughter-in-law of the head of the family replied in low voice, “…they will be prosecuted in heaven.”

This means there are people going around posing as reporters of MCL or other newspaper publishing companies. But MCL puts it aptly:

“Our editors, reporters, correspondents and photographers are expressly barred from soliciting, accepting money or any form of payment or inducement for publication of news, opinion, or features. Such content is free of charge and is published purely on editorial merit.”

Beginning last week, MCL products put up an announcement on this issue, pleading with everybody to report to the PE any acts against the company’s policy of zero-tolerance to corruption.