Rumbek Radio-98 back on air broadcasting for five hours a day

By Manyang Mayom

July 17, 2009 (KHARTOUM) — The government-owned Radio FM-98 is back on air broadcasting in Lakes state since last week, after pressure from
Governor’s Advisor for Peace and Reconciliation, Hon. Andrea Mabor
Biar.

The state-owned station had been off-air since June 1, allegedly due
to a technical problem with the transmitter. Radio director Mr. James
Magok Chilim said at the time that “The problem is going to be solved
in about 45 days and above.”

But according to radio technician Malual Makuei Kuat, who had served a
long time with Radio-FM98, there was nothing found wrong in the
transmitter, everything was found working well and now 24 hours of
broadcasting are reduce into five hours per day.

Meanwhile, an SPLM official in the Lakes state secretariat office had
accused the Radio Director of demolishing the SPLM program for general
mobilization for the election campaign. He said that the target date
for renewing transmissions would affect the mobilization campaign
because no radio programming could be made to raise awareness at the
grassroots level.

Radio Rumbek FM-98 was installed on February 3, 2007 and moved on-air
the following morning as the first major achievement of local
authorities in the media field since the signing of Comprehensive
Peace Agreement (CPA).

The Lakes State government officially opened Radio Rumbek FM-98 on
March 20, 2007 when the inauguration was attended by Governor Daniel
Awet, advisors, MPs and state ministers during the period when Adak
Costa Mapuor served as minister of Information, Communication,
Culture, Youth and Sport. Adak, who ran the ministry since the term of
former Governor John Lat Zechariah, was shortly thereafter ousted by
Governor Awet in 2007.

Moreover, a pay cuts pushed two local reporters to resign from state
radio while others complained that a state minister placed too many
controls on their freedom to provide coverage as they saw fit.

(ST)