MUVI TV has continued punch way above their weight in so far as providing local movies and musical video content on the station.
I have in mind the comical shows like the funny Lamba comedy Ba Foloko which I am sure sits well with the growth of the station in Lambaland on the Copperbelt.
It beats me, however, to see upcoming local actors try to mimic the established names instead of establishing their own brand.
Just last week, I watched the famous kangaroo court styled comedy show Mwine Munshi but the chief was a different person from the usual Kasaka we have all come to know.
What the young man who acted the role was doing is a good job at mimicking Kasaka but then you ask yourself the question that if he is indeed that good at it, why not etch out his own name in the industry that is yearning to produce many more new actors?
While we are still at this, acting should not just be restricted to comedy.
Somebody actually once said we have enough comics in Difikoti, Bikiloni, Kasaka, Bob Nkosha and the likes so let us have other aspects of acting.
This could actually give credence to the argument that Love Games and Banja was well-received by viewers because it brought out a whole new different aspect on our television a screen which is a breath of fresh air if you ask me.
Most of the amateur movies I have watched on Muvi TV including the music videos at some point made me think the station is too amateurish but now I realise that there is a stepping stone to everything and the channel of choice could just be providing that to our upcoming talents.
I am reliably informed that the Red Bag and other movies done by Muvi TV are well worth the K50 charged at Freshview Cinemas.
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The choice of topics on most of the talk shows on televison say a lot about the direction the station wants to take. Wednesday’s choice of ‘Rebranding Chibolya’ which was on morning live on ZNBC is one such case in point.
From the feedback ZNBC got, it appears most people feel the township had degenerated to the levels of lawlessness that law enforcement agencies too started considering it a no-go area.
The operation by the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) last Sunday has exposed the fact that the area was a time bomb ticking. This situation was allowed to get to these levels because the drug rings were allowed to feel untouchable.
It is no secret that in Chibolya, the sale of marijuana, cocaine and other such ilicit drugs is done openly as if it was the most legalised market. That is why the cutting off of the supply lines from the source as well as the market itself is the best way to curb the vice.
I felt for my fellow journalists from various media organisations that had to brave the volatile situation in the area to cover the clashes between DEC/police versus angry marketeers who responded to the operation angrily.
Talking about DEC operations, I watched uncomfortably on Wednesday as South African woman Thabisa Mlilwana sheepishly tried to explain herself on how she concealed liquid cocaine in condoms.
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Despite all the sensitisation by various interest groups on issues of Gender Based Violence (GBV), defilement, sexual and other ills in our society, these crimes are still going on unreported.
Just last week, Muvi TV broke out a story of a minor of Kaloko area in Ndola who has had her youth taken away from her after she was impregnated at the tender age of only 10.
As if that was not bad enough, the toddler’s mother has refused to disclose who is responsible for the inhuman act. Conspiracy theorists feel the mother knows who the culprit is.
Many such cases continue going unabated in our communities mainly because they are being perpetrated by the same people who should be the benefactors of these young girls such as their step fathers, uncles, half brothers etc.
For me, shielding the culprits of these devilish acts for one reason or another is as criminal as committing the act itself.
These minors whose lives are being destroyed will obviously not have enough guts to report their aggressors but the other people shielding the culprits presumably to save marriages are just as inhuman and selfish.
It was on the same Muvi TV that I saw the story of wife of a military man last who was badly beaten for refusing to have sex with him on his return from a ‘co-habiting’ mission with another woman.
Society needs to work together to stop these wrongs against women. It is also sickening to see people take to social media to create jokes about the over 200 Nigerian girls who were abducted by Boko Haram.
Before you poke fun at the issue that has attracted international condemnation to the extent of overshadowing the disappeared Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, think of the trauma that the families of the girls are going through.
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After all the grunting about the local television channels’ lack of sports content, I was impressed that ZNBC did not only televise one of the final matches of the English Premier League but also the coronation of the eventual champions Manchester City.
This was the befitting end to the fascinating Premier league season that reminded viewers, though, that the coronation of Zambian league champions Nkana last autumn was nowhere near the screens.
The good showing of the weekend was extended into the week when the national broadcaster extensively covered the Mopani Zambia Open Golf championship from Nkana Golf Club in Kitwe.
What also caught my eye is the fact that both ZNBC and Muvi TV are advertising that they will show next month’s World Cup finals in Brazil. It shows the two stations are moving with time although they should go a step further to state the actual broadcast times.
People want to plan their television schedule as much as they want to plan their day to day activities and it will be important to start showing the broadcast times in earnest so that those who are not privy to the difference in time zones between Zambia and Brazil can make informed decisions accordingly.
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