Prominent social media journalist, Hopewell Chin’ono has been criticised by some journalists for suggesting they were bribed to not report the Wadyajena bail hearing on Thursday.
Wadyajena’s bail hearing on a US $5 million corruption charge was not reported live by most publications as well as journalist feeds on social media. The lack of live reporting on the hearing led to Chin’ono tweeting:
Zimbabwean media, are you going to pretend like you’re not seeing my tweets?
Where is your reporting of today’s court proceedings in the Justice Mayor Wadyajena’s US $5 million case?
We know that money was offered yesterday for a media blackout.
Are you not embarrassed?
Chin’ono later deleted the tweet, for undisclosed reasons. Prominent opposition politician David Coltart also asked about the apparent silence?
There does not appear to be any report regarding the Zanu PF MP Hon Justice Mayor Wadyajena’s US$5 million looting case today. Can anyone shed any light on what has happened? Surely this is a matter of public interest
@DailyNewsZim @NewsDayZimbabwe @HeraldZimbabwe?
Responding to Chin’ono, ZimMorningPost founder and editor Elias Mambo said in a tweet “Respect your colleagues mkoma wangu..👏🏾👏🏾” and in another lengthy tweet:
I know you don’t rate journalists asi havauye kubasa kwenyu kuzokuudzai zvekuita.
When they wrote the story that Mayor had been arrested, had you asked them to?
Why are you make ugly insinuations now?
If you so vested why didn’t you go to the courts yourselves 😏
Another journalist commented:
It has become easy to attack journalists and journalism. It seems everyone now knows how we should do our work and when.
It is not clear if indeed bribes were offered to journalists to ignore the proceedings.