Dear Editor,
Please allow me the space to respond to a news item appearing in the Sunday Stabroek, of April 13, 2014.
The heading of the news item was ‘Region Ten’s lone private radio station to be pulled off air.’
My name is Haslyn Graham and myself and family are the sole owners of the 104.3 FM radio station at Linden. I am not aware that my radio station will be “shut down” within a week, neither am I aware of any demand from me of the payment of $5M in broadcast licence fees.
With regard to my legal and other obligations in relation to my position as the owner of a radio station, I have been in constant contact with my lawyers in Georgetown, for them to advise me on these matters. The advice that I have gotten so far has been confined to myself and family.
With regard to paragraph four of the newspaper article it was reported that the Regional Chairman of Region Number Ten, Mr Sharma Solomon stated that, “…the Region has been up to date in its payment to the radio.”
I wish to state categorically that this statement is not true. The region owes me an outstanding sum for its programmes which I have been trying unsuccessfully to collect for many months now.
I must state that the publication of this news report without any effort being made, by the reporter to contact me has taken me completely by surprise and the article has had the effect of causing unease in my business and among my advertising clients.
I do not know if any sort of mischief is afoot where the running of my radio station and its progress is concerned, but the text messages that appeared on my personal cell phone by the Region Ten Chairman and the Region Ten Member of Parliament, within several minutes of each other on the morning of Saturday, April 12, 2014 left me with a great feeling of uneasiness.
I wish to state that my radio station is not a political radio station and my main aim is to have programmes that are within the ambit of the law and would be enjoyable to all of the people of Linden and its environs.
Yours faithfully,
Haslyn Graham
Proprietor of 104.3 Power FM Radio
Station
Editor’s note
The story which appeared in the newspaper was a report on what was said at a statutory meeting of the Regional Democratic Council of Region 10 on April 3.
