By Nasratu Kargbo
The Executive Secretary of the Independent Media Commission (IMC) Khalil Kallon has said that their institution is working towards closing Justice FM after they refused to adhere to the suspension levied on them.
In an interview with Politico on the 20th of July 2023, Kallon said: “The law gives us the powers through a court order to put them off the air, with the assistance of a police officer not below the rank of an assistant superintendent and with a warrant. The IMC is moving towards that, to put Justice Radio off permanently”.
Speaking on how the incident started, the Secretary explained that they suspended phone-in programmes at three radio stations, namely: TUMAC, Justice FM and Citizen all in the eastern part of Freetown.
Explaining one of the reasons for the suspension, Kallon said that listeners through the phone-in programmes made inciting comments and hate speeches that were not good for the country’s peace, adding that they believed that such messages could threaten the peace and security of the country.
Highlighting the other reason for the suspension, he said “The IMC Act clearly states that before you open a phone line you must have a call delay broadcast system”. He explained that the delay system would give them the opportunity to screen incoming calls before putting the caller through, adding that they decided to suspend them because they do not have the equipment.
Kallon said after they had suspended the three radios, they noticed that Justice FM did not adhere to the action, noting that this led to them ordering the radio station to go off the air.
“By the laws of IMC, as we speak Justice Radio should not be on air,” Kallon said. He added that if in any case they still continue to broadcast the law gives them the power to go and shut them down.
Station Manager of Citizen Radio Alie Bai Kamara accused IMC of being biased, as one of the stations; Justice FM is still in operation and continues to take calls from the public.
He said they have called IMC on several occasions informing them about the other station that has defied them, but stated that nothing has been done.
He said citizens have the right to make their voices heard, adding that IMC has disadvantaged the people. He revealed that the people are not happy and have expressed their dissatisfaction, for not being able to partake in radio programmes like they used to.
Speaking on the effects of the suspension on their prorammes, Kamara said before now, their station never had a dull moment, but that with the suspension it has been just too boring. He explained that after presenting their programmes, they use to open their phone lines to get the people’s views on the programme aired.
TUMAC’s Senior Reporter Mohamed Charlie Mahoi on the 21st of July 2022 explained that they received a letter from IMC suspending phone-ins on all their programmes because they do not have delayed broadcast. He added that the letter addressed to them stated they were not suspended due to breaching the code of ethics.
Mahoi said the suspension has affected them financially, as a commercial station as their clients/advertisers have said they will not hold programmes at their station because the audience cannot give feedback through calls. “We are a law-abiding station and we respect the laws that govern us as a media institution. We call on IMC to lift the suspension, if not we would not have money to register, take a license or pay our staff” Mahoi said.
Just like Citizen Radio’s Kamara, Mahoi said that Justice FM still does their Phone-in programmes, which according to him is unfair to them. He added that the station has been broadcasting, causing problems, being one-sided and attacking past and present government officials. He claimed that if they were to do the same, the IMC would have written a letter querying them or imposing fines. “It is very heartrending, we want the government to intervene if Justice FM continues to broadcast, we will also go against the rules,” he said.
The European Union (EU) in their preliminary Elections Observation statement dated 26th June 2023 stated that prior to the elections the regulator (IMC) organised numerous trainings for journalists and monitored broadcasters’ coverage of the campaign.
However, the noted that the Commission suspended the licenses of the three radio stations for allowing on-air commentary during live call-in programmes, perceived as “hate speech”. ‘’Two stations were APC, one SLPP leaning. The regulator was perceived by media professionals as rather effective and fair”, the EU report said.
It explained that a handful of well-established radio and TV stations strived to offer balanced news coverage and engaged in fact-checking, helping voters to navigate the pre-election environment. The statement added that “many other outlets which are either owned by politicians or their affiliates or financially hinge on government advertising, openly rallied either for the APC or SLPP and allowed divisive language to be used on air”.
Politico contacted Justice Boima of Justice FM, but he declined to comment on the matter.
Copyright © 2023 Politico (24/07/23)
