Minister Ogwang:"Unprofessional people to blame for poor pay of journalists"

The state minister of ICT and National Guidance, Peter Ogwang, has blamed poor pay of journalists on unprofessional people who have infiltrated the media fraternity affecting the bargaining power.

His remarks were provoked by the ongoing discussions on different social media platforms on the poor pay of journalists.

In an interview with NBS Focal point on Sunday, Ogwang said the meagre pay of journalists is brought by a number of issues including the continuous employment of unprofessional people in the media.

"Your profession has been taken over by unprofessional people and once you allow your profession to be taken over by any other person, then this is the beginning of the problem,"he said.

Ogwang said it is absurd and painful to see someone who has spent three to four years in journalism school being given very little money which can't sustain his or her family.

"I think that person is not paid adequately as expected but this is because there are very many unprofessional people who are doing journalism work. So how do you begin to bargain for the good pay?"he said.

Ogwang called upon the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) to ensure that media houses employ professionals in the industry.

" It's my role to work for you as journalists because a better paid journalist is a journalist who can't give fake news," he added.

He urged journalists to stand up and protect their profession from being infiltrated by other people from other professions if they want to advocate for a better welfare.