The Lawyer representing the wife of the late Sam Basil in a case has called on the media to be properly informed before reporting on court matters.
Felix Waingi of the Albright Lawyers in Lae made this statement following a newspaper article published on the 20th of September regarding the arrest of Shalatee Dong Basil, wife of the late MP, Sam Basil.
On the 9th of September, the accused appeared before the Lae District Court for mention of alleged offences of breaking in and stealing. Waingi who is Mrs Basil’s lawyer said the article had the wrong name of the magistrate that presided over the case on the 9th.
Waingi said the article mentioned Magistrate Lorna Sani when it was Senior Provincial Magistrate Pius Tapil who presided over the case. He added, the reporter based the report on a police-hand-up brief, which he says was not yet ready before the court.
Mr Waingi further added the public depends on the media for accurate and appropriate information to report on issues happening in the country.
“We can’t have the media reporting biased and misinformation because the public consumes the information as their gospel truth,” Waingi said.
He said for a country like PNG, the public views allegations reported by the mainstream media as facts, whereas social media is used to make defamatory conclusions against the accused.
“I urged the mainstream media to be independent and report responsibly with the appropriate and right information so everyone is well informed,” Waingi said.
Meanwhile, Mrs Basil will appear for her committal hearing on the 4th of November. She is currently out on a K5000 bail with conditions.
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