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Jagna launches Bohol’s first community radio

Written by anyajulia on 13 October 2008

BEAMING a signal of innovative governance, Jagna launched Wednesday October 8, Bohol’s first community radio while sending to Jagnaanons a loud and clear call of molding empowered people partnering for development.

The empowerment envisioned by local authorities with a benevolent partner roots in health, social, cultural and economic education for sectors here through a wide field of information sharing.

Jagna Mayor Exuperio Lloren, in his inaugural message beamed live over Jagna’s DyJP FM said the new communications facility would become the town’s voice and allows the people a channel to air their concerns.

Operating on a temporary broadcast permit issued by the National Telecommunications Commission, Mayor Lloren said such is because the town still is processing the papers to comply with the broadcast requirements.

Not mincing words to praise Forrest Malakoff and Philos Health for putting up state of the art broadcast equipment, the mayor who also heads the Bohol mayors’ league vocalized his appreciation for the group’s unequalled concern for Filipinos and Jagnaanons.

Philos Health, a benefactor group headed by Malakoff is a San Francisco based health service provider. It first came to Jagna to offer a medical mission in the spirit of social responsibility.

The US based provider graduated from an outsider medical mission group into one that is genuinely with the local government in its health concerns for the people.

Everything else that happened later because Mayor LLoren was always a “yes we can do that“ man, Malakoff admitted in his message.

After its medical missions series, Philos has left a brand new vehicle, set up Jagna’s second rural health unit in Mayana and put up the communications equipment for the community radio, Mayor Lloren said.

The communications facility was initially proposed to bridge the divide between patients who need to continue getting their follow-up treatments at the clinic and health providers incapacity to put up a sustainable health education. This is to hit the prevention side of health care, shared Nimfa Lloren, DyJP FM station manager.

Rural health unit authorities have seen problems as patients seldom continue their treatment due to distance from treatment centers and financial constraints in coming to and from stations, she added.

The Jagna first lady, who also doubles as an active leader and women power motivator admitted they initially thought the community radio would be a real solution for the gap.

In the long process of planning, it was Malakoff who later hinted that other than political purposes, the community radio could be used for the town’s socio, religious and economic concerns, Lloren said.

Taking its share, the local government trained community broadcasters and ensured sustainable community radio operations by institutionalizing the community radio council (CRC), which was presented during the radio launch.

Also presented were broadcasters tasked to deliberate on the air educational topics ranging from the mundane children’s concerns, community policing, education, health, agriculture and still a gamut of issues important to Jagna-anons.

Philippine Information Agency’s Yvette Matabalan stressed in her solidarity message that the town leadership has indeed seen the critical value of information as a tool for empowerment and progress.

Over this, she vowed she would help the town by putting up technical support to assure sustainability of operations. (PIA/rachiu)

AIRING topics ranging from health to economic and social concerns, Jagna Community Radio, Bohol’s first community broadcast initiative by a town went on air Wednesday with Philos Health benefactor Forrest Malakoff detailing how the partnership with his company and the town started. (PIA)

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