Scene during the prayers in the studio.
The main private Hausa radio station serving the many Zongo communities strewn across Accra and beyond marked its seventh year of establishment yesterday in its Accra studio.
A highlight of the celebration was a recital of the Holy Quran and a special prayer by the National Chief Imam Sheikh Osman Nuhu Sharubutu who prayed for the survival of the radio station and the country at large. It is instructive that the National Chief Imam prayed for the station during its inception seven years ago.
The celebration was unlike any other. Popular Islamic clergymen were hosted by the radio station to add the spiritual touch to the occasion. Sheikh Armeyaw Shuaib, Spokesperson to the National Chief Imam, Ridwan Sulaiman, Tawfick Jamal Baba, Ahmad Tijani Haruna, Ali Hudu Jamal Baba and Musa Madaha took turns to pray for the continued progress of the radio station which they all agreed is playing a crucial role in the Zongo communities.
Naaba Sigri representative of the Zongo Chiefs presenting the citation to the CEO
In an interview with DAILY GUIDE, the Chief Executive Officer of Marhaba Media Limited owners of the radio station, Alhaji Abdullahi Baba Sheriff, said: “We were on air for the first time on 8th November, 2011. We are bridging the gap between the Hausa-speaking Zongo residents and their counterparts elsewhere in terms of information, entertainment and education. These are things the state broadcaster used to do and I recall the period between 1959 and 1960 when the two re-diffusion boxes in Konongo Zongo where my father was the Sarkin Zongo, served the needs of many residents with the state broadcaster’s Hausa programmes.”
Regarding the challenges being encountered by Marhaba, he pointed at electricity. “We spend so much money on electricity. Our transmitter on Kimik Hill at Kwabenya is a major consumer of electricity the cost of which is astronomical. We suffer power fluctuation and when that happens we rely on our generator, with high cost of fuel. Power fluctuation impacts negatively on our equipment. Between June 5, 2017 and June 5, 2018, we spent GH¢45,000 on electricity. We pay GH¢ 5000 every month on electricity in the office,” he revealed.
Marhaba is the most popular radio station in Accra; residents of the Zongos listen to it for information and entertainment programmes. It is also the medium of social announcements, an area in which it is unrivalled in terms of patronage and reach.
The National Council of Zongo Chiefs in commemoration of the anniversary sent a citation to the station. Signed by the President of the Council Alhaji Abdul Kadir Tahir the citation recognized the role being played by Marhaba in the Zongo communities.
Mr. Boamah the landlord and his wife joined in the celebration with a prayer for many more years of service to the community.
By A.R. Gomda