Luanda, ANGOLA, June 24 - Angolan Parliament?s 7th Commission which, inter alia, deals with social communication issues, has pledged to endeavour to have the Journalists Professional Licence and Ethics Committee get its budget to support its operations. ,

The pledge was made by the 7th Commission chairman, Boaventura Cardoso, during a Wednesday meeting with representatives of the Journalists Professional Licence and Ethics Committee, headed by its chairperson, Luísa Rogério.

On the occasion, journalist Luísa Rogério deplored that although supported by law, the Committee is still to get its budget secured, which hinders its functioning.

She added that lack of funds affects the Committee’s functioning, the purchase of equipment, creation of a journalists  registration website and delays the issue of the professional licence.

However, Luísa Rogério announced that the Committee will start issuing the journalists professional licences in three months time.

The Journalists Professional Licence and Ethics Commission is a body tasked with securing the functioning of the media personnel accreditation system in terms of the law.

Its duties include issuing, renewing, suspending or even impounding, in terms of the law, journalists’ accreditation papers, as well as judging and punishing infringements of ethical and deontological values by media professionals.

During the meeting, the parties also discussed the state of the press freedom in the country which, according to the secretary general of the Journalists Union, Teixeira Cândido, is severely affected by the poor expansion of the national press environment.

Teixeira Cândido regretted that the expansion of the press has not been very visible which affects the exercise of press freedom, partly due to the laws that govern the media sector, recently approved.

In his opinion, the Social Communication Legislative Package approved in 2017 demands very high amount of money ??for the creation of media organs, thus restricting many individuals from investing in this segment of business.

He recalled that the minimum capital required by law for the creation of a television station is Akz 800 million, while a  local radio is put at Akz 75 million (Usd 128,108).

According to him, journalists are hostages to groups that have capital and own the media industry, suppressing the press freedom, aggravated by the economic condition, as professionals are faced with the fear of being fired.