When will Radio Kogi comes on Air.— Miliki asks Gov. Bello.
A Human Rights Activist, and Executive Director, Conscience for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution CHRCR Comrade Abdul Idris Miliki, has challenged the state government about the disappearance of Radio Kogi from the Airwaves almost two years ago.
Comrade Miliki in Press Release made available to Journalists on Tuesday in Lokoja noted that absence of state broadcast channel has negative impact on the social and economic lives of the people of the state.
Miliki explained that Media has been a medium of expression and information sharing, it also serve as a revenue generation and outfit for employment, whether private or public owned in a society or country.
He said it was regrettable to note that since March 2021 or thereabout, the Kogi State owned Radio Station have been Off-Air without justification and verifiable explanation by Kogi State government and no genuine effort have been made since then to put it back On-Air.
” It would recall that 31 years of existence of Kogi State, it is yet to establish its own television station in the 21st Century.
Despite the colossal amount of money been spent by the Government of the State on National and International stations and improving their own revenue, denying Kogi people that brought them into power, promotion of their culture and adequate dissemination of Information through their own state owned medium.
“A closer look at the Budget 2022, the Kogi State Government spent only N140,219,589 on Kogi Broadcasting Co-operation and in the 2023 approve budget, paltry N299,947,255 was meant for Kogi Broadcasting Co-operation.
In a digital era, what can this amount do? Or improve in a medium that have been off air for the past 18 months or thereabout. The staff of Kogi State Radio Station could not practice their trade or profession since there are not equipment to do so.
“A visit to the premises of Kogi State Radio Station in Lokoja, that serve as the mouth piece or Mouth organ is in a sorry state, which host damage furniture and lack of good environment to perform media service.
“We call on the Kogi Governor as a matter of urgency to declare state of emergency on Kogi State Broadcasting Co-operation and to pay a working visit to the Kogi State Radio without further delay to save this all importance media establishment created by previous administration in the interest of Justice, information dissemination, improvement on revenue generation and development of Human Capital.
“We call on the Nigeria Union of Journalist and all media practitioners, in and out of Kogi state to save Kogi State Broadcasting Co-operation on the current mess it find itself in the hand of the current government.
“Since the creation of Kogi State, Kogi State Radio has never gone Off-Air for this long, even the private Broadcasting Stations in State have never gone Off-Air for three months. It is also to be recall that the media industry have suffer under this government than any other one.
“Allowances, Vehicles and subventions created by the previous administration have been stopped by this government. We wonder what the Media in Kogi State has done wrong to deserve this unnecessary treatment by the present Government.
“2023 elections is here, and regrettably Kogi Radio has no role to play. We call on the Kogi State Government to urgently bring Kogi Radio Station back On-Air without further delay.
