OP grounds public photojournalists from presidential coverage
Staff Writer | Monday February 17, 2025 12:51
The OP has however, vehemently denied charges of banning the lensmen, majority of whom are seniors in their field at the Department of Information Services from covering the President.
Source however, intimated that a directive coming from two powerful offices at the OP has instructed experienced government photojournalists armed with state-of-the-art equipment to stop covering the President as there is a team ‘contracted’ to do the work. Those who are not affected by the new developments include the Broadcasting Services (Botswana Television crew and Radio Botswana) and the Botswana Press Agency (BOPA).
Reports show that President Duma Boko's administration has appointed its own ‘presidential official photographers’ to work on creating photographic archive for history of Boko’s sixth presidency. Mmegi is informed that the lensmen’s superiors communicated the new developments to the concerned team recently.
Government media has some of the most talented, qualified and multiple award winning photojournalists in the country. Therefore, it is doubtful whether the newly hired photographers have the capacity to match the grounded ones.
Over the years, the government media photography section has been documenting presidents in Botswana. It started with the founding president, Sir Seretse Khama through to the past immediate president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, where there was a dedicated team of photojournalists deployed to cover sitting presidents.
According to Mass Media Complex reports, the quartet lensmen that has been grounded include Godfrey Mpuse, Yobe Shonga, Phenyo Moalosi and Thomson Keobaletswe. Despite the groundings,their colleagues consider them the very best.
Mass Media Complex witnessed the new deployments when the government of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) ousted the former ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) from power last year October General Election.
Denying accusations of a ban on presidential photographers, Permanent Secretary Government Communications, Montlenyane Baaitse distanced the OP from any ban of photographers. “Photojournalists who have covered the President's local and international trips are being redeployed to align with the new operational strategy and to address resource shortages in other areas,” was Baaitse’s explanation in an interview with Mmegi through written questions.
She insisted, “A dedicated team has taken on the responsibility of ensuring that the archives and operations related to the President's official trips remain seamless and efficient,” she said without further explanation.
Responding to allegations that the OP Press office has hired its photographers and isn’t utilising the services of public media photographers, Press Secretary to the President Emang Mutapati explained: “ The Office of the Press Secretary has hired a photographer and a videographer. This however, should have no bearing on the job of employed photographers at Mass Media Complex who work for the public media.” The two new photographers occupy the places of recently released two employees from the press office.