Malawi's Joy TV Denied Broadcasting Frequency

07 November 2007

Project Manager Tailosi Bakili said in an interview that Macra wrote them on August 28, 2007, that they had delayed in giving them a Studio Transmission Links (STL) Frequency because the body does not have a board.

�The STL frequency allows us to broadcast from the studio. In the absence of the frequency, it would be very different to broadcast,� said Bakili

Coincidentally, the recent development comes after Macra had its board dissolved following a lawsuit sought by the TV�s sister company Joy Radio, describing Macra�s board as unlawfully constituted with lack of institutional memory.

In turn Macra asked the court to discharge the injunction saying it was sought by a wrong party as one of the reasons.

Bakili said on September 13, the new TV station complained in writing to the state owned station, Television Malawi (TVM) and Macra that their signal was colliding with TVM when conducting test transmissions. Joy TV has been test-broadcasting for two weeks through music and other entertainment programmes.

BACKGROUND

The tit-for-tat battle between the Joy proprietors and the Regulator started early this year when Joy, through their lawyer Ralph Kasambara got a High court injunction restraining Macra from blocking its operations.

Kasambara said Macra could not transact any business to do with communications because it lacked the mandate to enforce and regulate communications in the country.

The High Court in Blantyre nullified Macra board because, among others its members were unqualified and that the appointment of the members was not gazetted as required by law.

President Bingu wa Mutharika appointed the Macra board alongside others to various boards of statutory corporations on March 1, 2006.

There is a strong link between Joy Radio and Television with the former President Bakili Muluzi where it is believed that the two institutions are owned by him.

Ends

Source: MISA