FEBRUARY 13, was a United Nations Educational, Science and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO)-recognised World Radio Day, a day set to commemorate the role radio plays in society.
This year’s observance fell on Monday, February 13 under the opportune theme ‘Radio is you’ to mean that radio is all about society.
With that kind of worldwide recognition, one would have thought that all radio stations should have taken advantage of the theme to discuss matters that concern radio broadcasting.
Sadly, only a few radio stations responded to that observance while most of them continued to entertain their usual endless phone-in discussions.
Listener’s agony is…
Agony is when all your favourite radio deejays are on air at the same time, but on different radio stations.
Agony is further compounded if your radio set has a knob selector and you struggle to wind up and down changing frequencies in a bid not to miss out.

This happens when, say Matimba Nkonje is on Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) Radio 4 with his Supper Sunday and Karen Nakawala  is on Radio Phoenix doing her thing.
Talking about Matimba, who has a totally different selection of Zambian music that is not regularly played by other deejays, he is a fast talker who flows well with fast beat Kalindula music.
If old habits die hard, Matimba could not end his session without playing a football-related song dropping ‘Nalelo eee bankana bawina’ a song played for the then, all-conquering Nkana Football Club of the 1980s by Serenje Kalindula band.
While the song Bankana bawina is danceable, the team’s line-up eulogised in that song makes listeners visualise the men in red, trouping in at Chilata Stadium playing field.
The song recounts great names in Zambian football history, late and alive, like Fighton Simukonda, Ben Pambili Bamfuchile, Kapambwe Mulenga, Godfrey Muselepete, James Njengela, Gorden Kazhika, Jericho Shinde and  Beston Chambeshi.
Others are Joshua Longwe, John Kalusa, Reuben Kamanga, Boyd Chabala, John Mofya, Mordon Malitoli, Isaac Phiri, Jerry Kaoma and Coach Moses Simwala.
Matimba’s presentation brings to memory the days of fallen ZNBC staff Isaac Mulinda (Doctor Zambia) who churned out hit-after-hit of Zambian music with passion.
For some reason, another soccer presenter on Chimwemwe Radio in Ndola Lameck Zulu, also known as 4 Legs, is just as impressive each time he hosts a musical show.
Interestingly, on one of his shows, Lameck had a listener calling from Zambia’s beautiful island of Chilubi on the waters of Lake Bangweulu in Northern Province.

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Agony still is when Kacaana Sinyani is on ZNBC Radio 4 early Sunday Morning and Paddy Mukando is on Phoenix at the same time.
What happens when say Valentine Mukuka (DJ Veep, son of a carpenter, man of information) is on Radio Icengelo and Zachaeus  Kasalu (Rowliv) is on Sun FM Radio at the same time.
What would a listener do when Chishala Chitoshi (Gesh Groove) is on Flava FM Radio and Sam Sakala (Man of all seasons) is on Phoenix at the same time?

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Radio has great deejays like Jack ‘The Hot Stepper’ Mwale with incomparable presentation whenever he takes to the airwaves.
Like other deejays would attempt to play reggae music, only Jack Mwale has a selection of unadulterated reggae beats.

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One would further ask why Msanide ‘One Nide’ has gone off air on Radio Icengelo? She had a fast tempo presentation that hit the airwaves enchanting each time she took over.

24 HOURS
If you have tuned in to radio late in the night, either when driving all-night long or you are simply awake at such hour, you could notice some radio stations claiming to broadcast 24 hours are simply on auto play.
This was proved last week when on a radio station, music kept playing one after another without word from the deejay throughout the night.
It was evident when one song finished and there followed a gushing sound over a long time.
Radio becomes alive when music is spiced up with commentaries of either historical or latest information shared by the deejay.

PHONE IN
If this column has complained about some radio stations hiding their inabilities to offer quality programming with live phone-in talk-shows, last week was not any different.
Among the radio stations monitored last Wednesday at 08:00 hours, three of them in Ndola were taking in phone calls from listeners at the same time.
As if that was not bad enough, the same callers could be heard phoning through to all the three radio stations with contributions.
Some callers could be heard attacking and outdoing each other as the presenters failed to guide the debate.

Stay tuned, if you can. jackmwewa@gmail.com – 0955115777