The Kanwan Katsina and District Head of Ketare, Katsina State, Alhaji Usman Bello Kankara has congratulated the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) on its 75th anniversary.
He described the milestone of the Federal Government number one radio outfit as a testament to resilience and excellence in public broadcasting in the country.
The royal father stated this in press release signed by his media aide and Sarkin Labarun Kanwan Katsina, Jamilu Hashimu Gora.
The press release which was made available to Maritime Bits noted that the paramount ruler granted an exclusive interview to FRCN where he reflected on his early career with the radio station in Kaduna decades ago.
According to the press release, the traditional ruler who once served as a staff of FRCN Kaduna in 1976, worked in the newsroom as a roving reporter shortly after completing his secondary education, before proceeding to Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Kadua State for further studies.
He recalled working under his then News Manager, Mr. Abdulaziz Oladimeji, noting that the experience laid a solid foundation for his future career especially when he was appointed as the Public Relations Officer (PRO) in the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).
The monarch commended the management and staff of FRCN for their commitment over the years, stating that the station has consistently played a vital role in educating, informing, and entertaining the public.
He also shared memories of the analogue broadcasting era, highlighting the challenges of news gathering and transmission at the time, and compared it with what he described as “the efficiency of modern-day digital broadcasting”.
The Kanwan Katsina who served in various positions and commands in NCS including Customs Area Controller (CAC), Eastern Marine Command (EMC), Port Harcourt, River State and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command, Abuja also applauded the establishment of the New Media Directorate in FRCN.
He noted that it will go a long way to significantly enhance public access to government policies and programmes.
The royal father however expressed concern over the persistent power challenges affecting FRCN Kaduna which sometimes lead to the station going off air for hours.
He enjoined the management of FRCN to consider adopting solar energy solutions to ensure uninterrupted transmission, describing it as unfortunate for such a critical station to experience downtime.
According to him, a lot of people, especially in Northern Nigeria depends on FRCN for news, education, and entertainment.
He enjoined the Director of New Media, Henritta Ibrahim, to consistently upload important news and programmes on social media platforms, to enable audience access content even when they miss radio broadcasts.
The royal father reaffirmed his confidence in the capacity of FRCN to continue evolving in line with global best practices while maintaining its legacy as a trusted voice in Nigeria’s media landscape.
