News Story

FREETOWN: JAMES KABIA: One expects a President's press secretary to explain away government actions and policy with a modicum of evidence. But that certainly was not the case this afternoon after Sheka Tarawallie released the most ridiculous narrative about Unity radio station not being registered even as the Head of the Independent Media Commission (IMC), Mrs Bernadette Cole, went on the air on Cotton Tree News (CTN) to state very clearly to the entire country that as far as the IMC is concerned, the SLPP's Unity Radio 94.9 is properly and fully registered to operate in the country. So what was Shekito saying then? What was the APC government telling lies then?

I personally confronted Sheka Tarawallie that this entire episode following hot on the heels of the vandalisation of the first SLPP radio station and other brutal attacks by APC Task Force members on SLPP headquarters in September 2007. This, I still believe, does not sell the ruling All Peoples Congress party well. The international community is attentive to this government's commitment to the twin principles of good governance and transparency. This banning of the SLPP radio station adds an indelible blotch on the APC government's already unremarkable record on transparency and good governance.

I am still in shock at why President Ernest Bai Koroma would risk his reputation and the integrity of his government by telling bold-faced lies in order to justify a return to the unacceptable APC history of violent suppression of the opposition. The president, like Sheka Tarawallie, knows the following:

1. The SLPP radio station has been fully registered since August 2007 and properly so with the IMC. The president and his men know this and the head of the IMC has said so to the entire country. If there is a violation, then a proper complaint must be lodged with the Independent media Commission.

2. The SLPP's bandwidth 94.9 was properly allocated by NATCOM in compliance with all laws and procedures and the APC government knows this. If there was a violation, then a proper complaint must be lodged with NATCOM which would investigate and resolve the matter in accordance with its mandate.

3. The chief engineer of the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Service, Dr Sesay, has said that the installation of the radio mast for Unity Radio 94.9 FM was done in accordance with SLBS' specifications governing the installation of broadcasting masts. If there was a violation, then a complaint would be lodged with the Chief Engineer whose duty it would be to request the owners of Unity Radio to resolve the problem.

4. In the event of bandwidth interference, NATCOM and SLBS engineers would work with the owners of Unity Radio Station to resolve the issue.

In essence, there are clear laws and regulations as well as regulatory bodies in this country that would resolve complaints and matters arising from the technical installation or operation of equipment associated with Unity Radio FM 94.9. NO PART OF THE CONSTITUTION OR THE LAWS AND REGULATIONS OF THIS COUNTRY STIPULATE THAT THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD BAN THE OPERATION OF A RADIO STATION withotu fully exploring all channels for remedial action. Good governance and transparency are not about press releases that are full of misleading statements. Good governance is about following procedures and processes and respecting laws and regulations, and allowing regulatory bodies to do the work for which they are appointed.

 

MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION

PRESS RELEASE

NO RADIO STATION HAS BEEN BANNED BY GOVERNMENT

One of the pre-election campaign platforms of the APC is the commitment to freedom of the press and creating an enabling environment for all media practitioners to carry out their functions without hindrance. Since the APC assumed office, this policy has been strictly adhered to even in the face of downright false allegations and unwarranted provocation.

The public is therefore informed that contrary to insinuations by the SLPP that their Radio station ‘UNITY’ has been banned, the situation is totally different. In order to put the records straight, Government is obliged to make certain clarifications:

• That the SLPP Radio did not go through the right procedures in terms of registration. The Ministry of Information was not legally informed with regards the operations of the radio

• That the SLPP Radio went ahead to install an antenna across other antennas at Leicester Peak using private engineers without the knowledge of the Ministry of Information.

• The installation of the said antenna caused disruptions in the transmissions of existing radio stations. These radio stations filed official complaints to the Ministry of Information, which caused Government to intervene

• Some SLPP executives, including Secretary General J.J. Saffa and former Presidential running-mate Momodu Koroma, have already been in discussion with Ministry of Information officials as late as yesterday Friday 9 th May 2008 about going through the official acceptable process

Let it therefore be known that if the SLPP Radio goes through the proper channels for its broadcast, then Government has no power to stop it or ban such broadcasts.

It should however be emphasized that this Government is a great respecter of the law and would not allow a group of people or any political party to flout the laid-down rules of this country or infringe on the rights of other people or institutions without intervening to correct the anomaly.

10 th May 2008