Residents Seek Upgrade Of FRCN Enugu

As the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria marks its 75 years’ anniversary, residents of Enugu have called on the concerned authorities to upgrade FRCN, Enugu Zonal headquarters, to be at par with its counterparts in other regions of the country.

According to them, the present state of the station, also called Coal City FM 92.9, requires a state of emergency to enable the residents to continue to be informed through various programmes of the station.

“Time was when FRCN, Enugu Zonal headquarters, was blazing the trail in the entire South East,” states Gabriel Nnamchi, a lecturer. “Then we used to be glued to the station like radio addicts. The transmission was perfect; the programmes highly educating and entertaining, while the presenters were top notch. These days, we don’t get to hear the station again. It is either offline or only heard when one is in Enugu metropolis. It may not be the fault of the management, but negligence of the supervising agency.”

Obiora Ezeme resides at Nsude, Udi Local Government Area of the state. He said, “I only know private radio stations based in Enugu. They are the ones keeping us informed. Coal City FM comes on epileptically. I want its full return on air because it ought to be the best in terms of entertainment, informing and educating. Private radio stations in Enugu are doing their best, but old presenters of Coal City FM are still being missed. I don’t even know the names of most programmes and presenters at Coal City FM now because of its poor outreach. The station’s facilities are obsolete. The management might be doing its best within its available instruments, but generally not enough for the listeners.”

Johnson Ozoene, from Ngwo-Uno, Enugu North LGA called for collective efforts to return the station to its competitive state. “Ohanaeze Ndigbo, South-East governors and individuals should come to the assistance of the station. The station has sub-stations in all the South East states. It may also have adversely affected it because residents of the areas with such stations might forget the mother station. But we should help the zonal headquarters to regain its fame in broadcasting. It may also be affecting its revenue strength because it is meant to generate revenue. Its lapses are being exploited by the private radio stations in Enugu.”

Samuel Echi, living at Nsukka, said, “I place adverts on private radio stations in Enugu because of their wider outreaches. I know FRCN station in Enugu, but I hardly get it on air. It is therefore better to patronise the stations one can listen to with ease for adverts. It may interest you to know that I listen to the FRSC Network News from some radio stations in the North Central: Nassarawa, Benue, Plateau and Kogi. FRSC’s sub-stations in the South East don’t always hook up to the Network News. Let the FG replace the obsolete equipment of FRSC Zonal headquarters, Enugu, to give us a sense of belonging. It has a large compound and old buildings, but yet to equal some private-based stations that operate in smaller buildings.”