ESAT News May 18, 2015
A baseline study that the state owned television, Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation (EBC), conducted reveals that several households refused to pay annual television fee for its service. Most of the households do not want to spend their hard earned money for a television broadcast they have never watched, or do not like to watch, the report states. Besides, the television station is considered as unreliable for reporting fabricated news and views which do not exist in reality. It is also accused for ignoring the glaring truth on the ground such as human rights violations, corruption, poverty and mal-administration. Some respondents of the survey expressed their resentment and disgust repudiating the existence of a television station known as EBC. Some other households were reported to have said, “We have not watched Amharic television station other than ESAT, it has been three years now.”
The report is a proof for EBC’s failure to include television owners in the tax system. Many people believe that EBC is wasted in the air with probably very few audience. It could not compete with ESAT in Ethiopia, the report added.
The survey from the baseline study also revealed that many people have shown an enormous initiative to support ESAT. It recommends television tax to be included with other basic services. It recommends sellers to register at Attorney when customers buy new television sets.
EBC is financed by the budget it collects from the public and yearly advertisement up to 123 million birr.
In another news, ESAT has been transmitting its 24/7 programs on SES 5 for two year’s until it was clogged on March 23, 2015.
ESAT’s management has stated that EPRDF exerted all its efforts to take ESAT away from the air by bribing satellite companies, pressuring powerful nations, jamming its transmission, and luring them with big projects.
The management said in its statement, “More than their commitment to jam us, we understand the urge of the Ethiopian people for freedom. Hence, we will pay every sacrifice so that ESAT will continue to be the voice of Ethiopians.”
The management has called Ethiopians and all freedom supporters to help ESAT in its endeavour to transmit its services with more satellites and channels. ESAT will announce the new satellites and their frequency shortly.
ESAT transmits a 24 hour radio program to Ethiopia on AB 7 satellite.