By: Problyn J. Alpha
The Independent Media Commission (IMC) District Media Officer for Kono, Massah Foday Musa, has held a familiarisation meeting with radio station managers in the district to strengthen professional relationships and promote responsible broadcasting.
The meeting was held at the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) office at Mount Zion in Koidu City, bringing together managers of the district’s eight radio stations.
In his welcome address, SLBC Kono District Station Manager and Coordinator of the Kono District Station Managers Association, Alhaji Dauda Kamara, expressed delight at the opportunity to meet with the IMC representative.
He informed the meeting that the association was planning to organise training for media practitioners in the district, focusing on election coverage, media law and ethics.
Kamara said the meeting was intended to strengthen relations between the station managers and the IMC while promoting professionalism within the district’s media landscape.
In her remarks, Musa said the meeting provided an opportunity for her to familiarise herself with the eight radio station managers and strengthen cooperation between the commission and the media institutions it regulates.
She explained that her role in the district was to represent the commission and ensure that media practitioners and radio stations operated within the required professional and regulatory standards.
Musa advised station managers to observe the chain of command in their respective workplaces, noting that this would promote effective communication, healthy working relationships and proper office conduct.
She also expressed satisfaction with the performance of media practitioners since she assumed office in the district, urging them to maintain the standard.
The IMC district media officer further commended radio stations that broadcast their programmes online, saying the practice had eased her monitoring responsibilities. She encouraged other stations to embrace online broadcasting, noting that it could expand their reach and increase listenership.
Musa also disclosed that the commission planned to organise training for filmmakers in the district in the near future.
The station managers welcomed the meeting, describing it as an opportunity to build a stronger working relationship with the commission. They pledged their support and willingness to cooperate with the IMC representative in carrying out her duties.
They also proposed the introduction of a joint radio programme, to be simulcast across participating stations, through which Musa would educate media practitioners and the public about the commission’s regulations and guidelines.
On the issue of annual licence payments, the managers attributed delays in meeting their obligations to the current challenges facing businesses in the media industry.
Meanwhile, Sahr Isaac Bamba, popularly known as DJ Bee, was officially introduced at the meeting as the Acting Station Manager of J&J Voice of Kono Radio, following the resignation of the station’s former General Manager, Peter Munda Stevens.