March 29, 2024

Bicol Express News

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Camarines Sur’s “fire-spitting” DWKM 100.7 FM Signing Off; no valid franchise

Station Manager and Radio Commentator Joe Osabal of DWKM 100.7 FM Naga announced, via Raymarx Pielago a.k.a. Papa Mico’s social media post, that their radio station will go on a temporary voluntary shutdown of its broadcast operations following the advice of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) pending the “renewal of their congressional franchise.”

Osabal assured their listeners and advertisers that they will be back on-air in the soonest possible time.

Pielago posted the announcement on social media on Friday, 28 May 2021 at 1:02PM.

Last week, it can be recalled that Ex-Congressman Rolando Andaya Jr. of the First District of Camarines Sur first broke the news regarding DWKM’s expired franchise.

Joe Osabal, then countered Andaya’s statements, calling them inaccurate.

Osabal added that although their franchise has indeed expired, the NTC granted them a provisional authority enabling them to continue their broadcast, sans a valid franchise.

Andaya went on and wrote the NTC Central Office in Quezon City regarding DWKM’s expired franchise.

Joe Osabal, well-known hard-hitting radio personality, bid farewell to advertisers and listeners, as the station will close down after the expiration of the franchise of its affiliated network, Sorsogon Broadcasting Corporation, whom KMFM has agreement to use for its operation.

DWKM-FM has a contract with Sorsogon Broadcasting Corporation to “ride on its franchise” and license for the station to operate, as the station has no franchise on its own.

In November, 2020, the franchise of SBC expired, the company failed to renew it’s franchise before Congress which has the sole power to grant franchise, just like the ABS-CBN franchise issue which Congress did not renew last year.

In Camarines Sur, station DWKM-FM is publicly known as controlled by both father and son, Congressman LRay Villafuerte and Governor Migz Villafuerte.

DWKM-FM is a popular FM station with a large following, but hard-hitting on political opponents of the Villafuertes.