Residents of Leer County of Unity State on Thursday celebrated the reopening of Leer 88.0 FM and Mary John Primary School, which were renovated with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Sheja Salam project.
The school and radio station were destroyed during the conflict in 2013 and 2016, respectively.
Leer FM, formerly known as Naath FM, is under The Radio Community (TRC), which supports community radio stations in the country.
Speaking to hundreds of residents during the celebration, Acting Commissioner of Leer County Gatyiek Lityang said they welcome the reopening of the radio station, pointing out that the re-establishment of the station will help community members express their views freely.
“The radio was off for a long period due to conflict. So weeing it back on-air is a happiness to the community,” he said. “Journalists are people who support the government in sending out information. No officials will be against them.”
For his part, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of TRC, Mr. Chris Marol, said the radio will be a great source of information to the community in Leer, Mayendit, Koch, and Panyijiar counties.
“Our radio will cover 30 square kilometers from Leer to Panyijiar County, including two counties Koch and Mayendit,” he explained.
Marol called for good relations between journalists and local authorities to ensure there is free and independent media, which he said is a cornerstone of any democracy.
Guet Kuong Mabil, a resident of Leer County, said that the reopening of the station will help the community of southern Unity to get back their source of news and information after many years without a radio.
“Today, Leer FM, formerly known as Naath FM, is back to give accurate, fair, and independent news and information in our local language. We are happy with the community radio,” he said.
Another resident from Mayendit County, Lang Chan Nhial, said: “The relaunch of the radio is very important to the people because we don’t have access to the Internet. So we will just open the radio and get the information locally here.”