Lilian urges female journalists to work smart, uphold integrity

Lilian Timbuka is the news editor of Mwananchi at Mwananchi Communications Limited (MCL). She joined the company in 2014 as a sub-editor. The other positions that she has held include Health Magazine editor and Political and Special Desk for Elections editor.

She has won four awards. The lattest being Women of Achievements Awards last year on the International Women’s Day. The award was for recognising the impact of her piece on women empowerment in connection with leadership.

The story helped a 19-year old girl with dreams of becoming a politician. After the story was published, the girl went ahead and collected nomination forms in one of the political parties and she is now the sitting Councilor in Morogoro Region.

Lilian says growing up, she always wanted to become a journalist. This desire was built up from the days of her primary education. She would read Mfanyakazi newspaper and used her walkman radio to listen to different programs.

“I used to ask my elder sister to buy me Mfanyakazi. And I used my small radio to listen to Sara Dumba and Eda Sanga on their radio programs. I would as well listen to different bands, cram the songs and later shared them by singing before my fellow pupils at school,” she says.

Adding to that, she says, one of her primary school teachers recognized her talent as well as her ambition to become a journalist, particulary for doing well in essay writing. Hence, solidifying her desire to become a scribe.

“I started to practice how to present news in front of my fellow pupils while in Standard Seven. I would listen to how our teachers taught us while in class. When sitting with my fellow pupils, I would present what we were taught in form of news to fellow pupils,” she says.

After her A-Level studies, she was selected to go for teaching college in Tukuyu District. She didn’t like the appointment. Lucky enough for her the appointment letter came in when her father was away in Germany and her mother was busy in the kitchen so she couldn’t see that the letter had been dropped at their houose.

She opened the letter and realised it was her post. She hid it in her pillow and made sure none of her family members ever found out about it. The main reason being that she wanted to parsue her dream in journalism and nothing else. But, her father her father insisted that she should go for a secretarial course that he thought to be more marketable at the time.

After several days, as her parents wondered how come she never got a post, she too joined them in this. Then, she decided to share her thoughts with her parents that she wanted to become a journalist. The parents rejected her idea. She had to contend with that and go to Tabora for a two-year secretarial course, adding another year studying storekeeping.

According to her, she was not happy with their decision but she had no choice. After her courses she secured a job in which she only worked a year. While working she enrolled herself at the Tanzania School of Journalism for a Certificate Course without informing her parents.

“Since, I had a salary, I spent it on my tuition fees. When it was time for field attachment, I went to Tumaini Radio Station and after a few days there I was allowed to host a ‘Greetings program’ on the Radio,” she says.

Her father learned of her endeavours from a friend who called him after hearing Lilian hosting the program. He was caught by surprise. He talked about it with his wife (Lilian’s mother) and she too didn’t know about it, but just recalled that Lilian had wanted to become a journalist. She says, when she returned home, her parents had a chat with her and gave her their blessings.

After her field attachment, the Radio management asked her to stay and work some more to gain more experience. This encouraged her to continue to study at the diploma level while working at Radio Tumaini until 2002.

She then moved to Kiongozi newspaper and worked as a reporter for seven months and later was promoted to Features editor and in late 2004 she became its acting news editor.

In 2009, she moved to Uhuru newspaper as a sub-editor. The very same day she resigned from Kiongozi newspaper was the day she received a call from Uhuru and was offered a job. Her resignation followed up misunderstanding with her former boss.

She worked with Uhuru until Mwananchi offered her a job.

Commenting on how she was offered jobs without applying for them, she says, she believes that hard work and good works speak for themselves.

This, she says, has helped her survive over the years in her career journey.

Talking about her leadership style she says, it is participatory style of leadership, with the aim of empowering each team member in the newsroom.

There are times she picks reporters randomly and gives them articles to edit. This is one way of mentoring and building their capacity, she says.

Being asked on the challenges she has come across in her work and how she overcomes them, Lilian says g apart from not being able to agree with her former boss, she has been able to have a good and friendly work environment as she respects work guidelines that keep her coping.

Adding to that she says, being able to be offered jobs in her lifet makes her push her abilities to deliver due to the trust people have put in her.

Being consistent, not creating chances to complaining and holding on to integrity, looking for information, believing in herself and commitment are some of the things that each journalist must cultivate to support his or career growth career.

Commenting on claims that some female journalists use sexual favours to excel in the newsroom, Lilian admits that such incidents are there to some extent, but insists that whoever ‘climbs’ the ladder that way cannot get very far because their true abilities would reveal at some point. She advises women in the newsroom to uphold integrity and work hard and smart to horn their skills and abilities so that they would excel without the need of using unacceptable means.

“Only adults work in a newsroom. Depending on how one carries themselves, they may invite being seduced. But sexual favours is not the way to help one to grow. So, women should say no to proposals that need them to exchange excelling for sexual favours. This can also amount to sexual harassment. Integrity is the way to go,” adds Lilian.

Commenting on the changes she would like to see in female journalists, she says she wants to see them parsuing further studies, grabbing various opportunities and working hard, smart.