The government-run television service in South Sudan is no longer broadcasting on the Arabsat satellite channel where it is typically accessed by viewers with satellite receivers.

Adil Faris Mayat, director of South Sudan Television, confirmed the problem in a Facebook post yesterday that he has since deleted, calling on volunteers to give money to the station.

He said that the manager of the Freedom Group Paul Ater had donated 250,000 SSP for the maintenance of the TV on terrestrial broadcast, but called on well-wishers to donate money for the maintenance of the satellite TV channel.

Radio Tamazuj contacted the TV director for further explanation but he declined, claiming he is not allowed comment on the matter.

For their part, several South Sudanese activists and journalists commenting on the matter attributed the problem to non-payment of the satellite subscription bill by the government.

They expressed their discontent about the matter, while criticizing the government’s plan to make a broad-based government and add more states, which cost more money.

File photo: Pro-war broadcast on the state-run SSTV, 2015