Many of the
community radio stations in Zambia are owned and run by the
Catholic Church which has lived up to its teaching of being the
voice of the voiceless.
In Western
province, the Catholic Church through Missionary Oblates of Mary
Immaculate (OMI) realised the need to empower people through
integral evangelisation and the provision information to
remotest areas.
The oblates
thought of using the media to reach out to people in remote
areas and preach the gospel of Christ. This is how Oblate Radio
Liseli, whose primary objective is to spread the light of
Christ, was born.
Oblate Radio
Liseli’s programming has in the recent past been characterized
with live phone-in programmes which range from civic education
campaigns to good quality governance.
In the run up to
this years’ tripartite election that Zambia is scheduled to be
held on the 28th September, 2006, the Radio station has come up
with programmes aimed at giving equal coverage to all contesting
political parties and by reporting on political events
objectively and accurately.
‘Meet your
leaders’ is the latest addition to the already existing Good
Governance and Catholic Commission for Justice, Development and
Peace (CCJDP) programmes which have been running throughout the
year. It is aired twice weekly on Saturdays and Sundays at 20.00
hours. This is so because all calls are charged at off peak
rates during this time.
During the ‘Meet
your leaders’ programme, each aspiring candidate is given a
free 30-minute slot on air. In the first 15 minutes, the
candidates give their manifestos, highlighting what they will be
able to do once they are voted into power. In the last 15
minutes, the lines are opened and people ask questions directly
to the candidates.
The response from
the public has been very good. We usually just cut off callers
because of the limited time in the programme. People are usually
enthusiastic as they want to know more about the people who
would like to represent them in public offices.
These candidates
are asked to pay for the time if they want to come back on air
for extra time.
All CCJDP
programmes are sponsored and they are also usually interaction
programmes where people phone in to discuss issue at hand whilst
good governance is sponsored by Media Institute in Southern
Africa (MISA) Zambia chapter.
Our reporters
usually go out in the field to research on the concerns of
people in different areas and scenarios. Whenever there is a
need for answers to concerns posed by the public, we usually
bring someone in authority positions to give answers.
Most aspiring
Members of parliament in Western province have utilised this
opportunity and the public have also responded likewise.
Oblate Radio
Liseli has remained non-partisan by taking a neutral stance on
political issues. This is in as much as we realize that our role
and duty as a radio station is to inform, educate, evangelise
and provide a platform for all people to discuss on various
issues affecting them.
