By Staff Reporter
BULAWAYO – Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda has launched a blistering attack on ZTV and Star FM, accusing some presenters of undermining Zimbabwe’s cultural identity through what he described as “pedantic and pedestrian” broadcasting.
Mudenda, speaking at the ongoing 2027 Pre-Budget Seminar in Bulawayo on Thursday, said he had instructed his aide and driver to listen to broadcasts from the two stations before expressing his disappointment over their content.
He described some of the programmes as “very poor” and said they did little to promote Zimbabwe’s image.
“There are certain words you cannot use in the public domain, and you must respect the listeners accordingly. ZTV and our radio should be used to brand Zimbabwe,” he said.
Mudenda, took particular issue with presenters’ use of colloquial expressions, arguing that their language reflected a lack of cultural appreciation and was contributing to the erosion of indigenous languages.
He cited expressions such as “ndokusendera, chii chocho”, questioning their suitability for public broadcasting.
“They send a rough message… ‘ndokusendera, chii chocho’,” Mudenda said.
He warned that continued disregard for proper use of indigenous languages could leave Zimbabwe facing a cultural identity crisis within the next 50 years.
“Honourable minister (Soda Zhemu), can you imagine what will happen in the next 50 years if we follow this kind of broadcast?
“We have the language? So they should appear and speak our beautiful mother tongue, so that our mother tongues are preserved for posterity,” he said.
“Language defines our dignity. Language defines our identity.
“You do not define yourself when you talk about ‘unondisendira’. This must stop,” Mudenda added.
He urged the ministries of sports and education to develop a policy promoting national pride in indigenous languages and ensuring their proper use in broadcasting.
Mudenda warned that failure to act could see Zimbabwe’s languages lose their distinctiveness.
“Otherwise, in the next 50 years we have no identity at all. Our Shona will be Chiraparapa, our Tonga will be Chiraparapa, our Kalanga will be Chiraparapa.
“Zimbabwe cannot afford to identify itself as a Chiraparapa linguistic nation.
“That has to stop. Please save us,” he said.
