To atone for the embarrassment suffered from the negative publicity received after a school dropout was convicted for running an improvised community radio station, Malawi’s Communications and Regulatory Authority (MACRA) has said it will donate state-of-the-art community radio equipment and a license to Gabriel Mkondesi who operated the popular radio illegally.
Mkondesi was forced to pay a fine after his conviction for operating the “radio station” in his rural Mulanje district of southern Malawi where he introduced phone-in programs to the community.
MACRA Communications Officer Zadziko Mankhambo said the body had received many complaints from the community where Mkondesi radio was operating, demanding to give them an alternative to the young man’s illegal service.
Due to this “MACRA will donate the equipment and a license to Mkondesi, probably next month, so that he can start operating programs which can benefit the community,” he said.
However, Mkondesi was described by academicians and other quarters of society as innovative, creative and a genius.
According to press reports, he wired together two radios and made it possible for listeners to air their views using mobile phones.
But the service was highly appreciated by the local community until the police swooped on him, took him to court for the conviction. This solicited an outcry from the community and other legitimate broadcasters who solicited funds to free him from prison.
Source African Press Agency
