By Lodu William Odiya
The government of Central Equatoria state have yesterday reopened Equator Broadcasting Corporation, Television and launched Central Equatoria state Newspaper.
Speaking during the event, the state governor Emmanuel Adil Anthony emphasized that the government would not interfere with the operation.
“We are open for positive criticism from the public so that we deliver more because media is hoping estate of the government” Adil stressed.
“We will not interfere much as a government and I want to commit this so that you not only make business but also you inform our public without bias” he added.
Governor Adil emphasized that as the country prepare for elections, this station or media outlets is going to be a platform for civic education and more importantly informing citizens of the readiness for the elections.
“Let this radio, tv and newspaper be for passing peace messages across our state and we will be extending its coverage to all our counties and the Wonduruba Administrative Pyramid so that our people have rights, information and access even to this newspaper” he stated.
Adil urged the media team to maintain ethical standards and as alluded, adding that the state would address the issue of capacity building and other challenges faced by their media outlets.
“We’ll address the issue of mobility, the issue of power so that this station will continue to run without any much problem. This station, both tv and radio, I will encourage since it’s a corporation, we will give you the rights to its independence in terms of doing its operation” he said.
He underscored the economic conditions and subsequent transitions when the country was divided in to 28 and 32 states respectively, affected the transmission of this media outlet.
“I want to inform the public and all of us here that this remains an ideal project worth reviving. So, our presence here demonstrates our commitment that EBC, the TV and radio stations are back on air” he stated.
He emphasized that the plan to have the TV and radio was for the state to disseminate information to its citizens and the entire population, and also showcase its people’s cultures.
“I know there are a lot of challenges that are going to face this station, but keeping this station working is a dream we will all aspire to maintain” Adil told the public.
Governor Adil highlighted that the state had already done some refurbishment, but will, still continue to improve on it to the best standards that they aim to achieve.
According to Adil, the state intended to digitalize all services and operations and address the issue of power.
“Initially, we had solar panels here, I think there was a technical glitch in terms of connections, but definitely we will be addressing these challenges so that this station launches today and the radio continues to function 24 hours to deliver the aspiration of the people and the government of Central Equatoria state” Governor Adil revealed.
He told the public that the radio, tv and the newspaper is going to be the voice of the government, but more importantly the voice of the people of Central Equatoria State and South Sudan at large.
“We are going to use this as a platform to exchange ideas. Let’s use it as a platform for debates that we can generate ideas for the betterment of our governance in our state and management of affairs of our state” he stated.
He said the newspaper is not only going to showcase what the government do, but would be a platform to get feedback from its people.