J1 making arrangements to let local journalists interview Kiir
The government through the office of the president is making arrangements that would make it possible for local South Sudanese journalists to hold exclusive interviews with President Salva Kiir.
This was revealed by Presidential Press Secretary Ateny Wek Ateny in an exclusive interview with The City Review earlier this week.
Asked why it was nearly impossible for local journalists to access the President, Ateny said the nature of work could not allow the office to make schedules for such interviews.
“It is the nature of the situation we are in that has made it difficult for local journalists to access the President for interviews,” Ateny said. “As I told you, we have been addressing crises. The President of this country is the only one who is very much disturbed about how to pull the country out of the crisis it is in.”
Ateny said many local journalists have shown interest in interviewing Kiir but because of his busy schedules, information of public interest has been made available to scribes through the presidential communication desk.
“Most of the time, journalists want to interview the President on a number of things, but we feel that they are already available through the communication department. There are already officials that are available if the facts are just for information. I don’t think there is any single thing that we usually leave without telling the journalists so that they can look for the President to be the one talking to them,” Ateny said.
“The Office of the President is open 24/7 for them, but sometimes, they can apply for interviews with the President, and we find the President’s schedule completely full. We cannot leave him with the local journalists who come in for him every day,” he said.
However, Ateny said the president’s office will soon allow local journalists to book exclusive interviews.
“I already have a programme where whoever wants to have an interview with the President can write their application, address it to me; attach your questions, and then, from there, I will arrange the time for the President to give an interview at least once in a while, not all the local media,” he said.
“If we put all the local media to have interviews with the President, it would be an average of 1 interview per day for one month; and the President will not be able to do other work,” he added.
The press secretary argued that priorities are often given to foreign journalists because they are invited once as part of a rebranding initiative.
“The international journalists come once in a while. So Jeff Koinange came here in 2016 on our invitation to come and see how things are happening in Juba, so that he could convey the message to his Kenyan counterparts, who are good brothers of South Sudan and with whom we want to understand what transpired on July 8, 2016.
“The last time he came, it was upon his request, and we put the request into consideration. So, if a particular journalist is lucky enough to find that the President has nothing to do that particular week, we could schedule your interview with the President, but it is just a matter of the President’s having a busy schedule. I am not looking down on local journalists nor doubting their capacities. Some of those who come from outside have the same capacities as our journalists here,” he said.
“So, I am putting them into consideration, only that the time didn’t allow now. But, as soon as time allows, we will have local journalists interviewing the President,” he added.
Asked when the arrangements shall come to effect, Ayeny said “From March till the end of this year, we will be able to arrange to put local journalists on board. At least twice, if not thrice, within three months.”
