The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has moved to the Court of Appeal seeking to unblock a broadcasting code it had issued in 2016, setting up a fresh battle with the Media Council of Kenya (MCK), which had opposed the laws.
High Court Judge Lawrence Mugambi quashed the broadcast laws on grounds that the State infringed on the independence and freedom of the media by giving directions on how and when content should be aired.
Justice Mugambi had also ruled that the industry regulator had encroached on the mandate of the MCK.
CA, however, said it was dissatisfied with the decision because the judge had allegedly failed to appreciate that the right to freedom and independence of the media, was not absolute.
Through lawyer Wambua Kilonzo, CA added that the High Court judge erred in holding that inappropriate broadcast content is an ethical issue, which should be dealt with under the context of media standards by the MCK rather than CA, as the regulator.
The industry regulator maintains that the programming code for broadcast media is a licensing standard or condition and not a media standard.
“The learned judge of the High Court erred in law and in fact by usurping the role of Parliament being the legislative arm of government and erroneously proceeded to purport to legislate by transferring regulatory function of the appellant (CA), as legislated by Parliament, to the 3rd respondent (MCK),” Mr Kilonzo said in the application.
Justice Mugambi had suspended his judgment for six months, to allow MCK to develop age-appropriate standards to protect children and other vulnerable persons from appropriate media content.
The regulator had stated that its programming code was meant to protect children from inappropriate or harmful content.
CA on its part said the Programming Code was not a set of media standards but a licensing standard for regulation of the broadcasting industry.
