BY ISSAH OLEGOR
The National Communications Authority (NCA) has suspended the operations of nine radio stations across the country for various breaches of broadcasting regulations, following the lapse of a 30-day grace period granted by President John Dramani Mahama to defaulting media outlets.
According to the NCA, in a statement, the grace period, announced in July 2025, was part of a regulatory amnesty aimed at giving offending FM stations the opportunity to regularise their operations and comply with the Electronic Communications Regulations, 2011 (L.I. 1991).
The decision to offer the amnesty followed years of concerns about non-compliance in the radio broadcasting industry, ranging from expired licences to unauthorised transmission setups.
Six Stations Ignored Amnesty Completely
According to the NCA, six stations “failed, refused and neglected” to take any action to address the violations during the amnesty window.
The affected stations, now suspended from broadcasting, are:
1. Donplus Multimedia Limited – 105.9 FM, Ho
2. Dreams Ghana Media Limited – 104.9 FM, New Abirem
3. Jam Multimedia Limited – 101.3 FM, Kintampo
4. Jewel Group Limited – 102.7 FM, Duayaw Nkwanta
5. Kpandai Star Community Radio – 107.3 FM, Kpandai
6. Unique Gateway Communication Limited – 105.7 FM, Nkawkaw
These stations, the NCA said, made no effort to pay outstanding regulatory fees, renew their authorisations, or address technical non-compliance issues such as transmitter locations and signal interference.
Three More Suspended for Partial Compliance
While several other radio stations took steps to fix their breaches during the grace period, three stations under the Wontumi Multimedia Company Limited owned by the Ashanti Regional Chairman of NPP, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, aka Chairman Wontumi, which the NCA claimed it failed to address specific violations, including the unauthorised use of Studio-to-Transmitter Link (STL) frequencies and the operation of transmitters from unapproved locations.
The stations affected are:
1. Wontumi Radio (Accra) – 95.9 FM
2. Wontumi Radio (Kumasi) – 101.3 FM
3. Wontumi Radio (Takoradi) – 101.3 FM
The NCA noted that these stations were operating without a valid Certificate of Compliance, a clear violation of Regulation 54 of the Electronic Communications Regulations.
