Native Radio Sessions

They Need The Means

Few Natives Can Enjoy NG Native Radio Sessions

(From Our New Guinea Correspondent) A GALLUP Poll of native listeners to the Native People’s Session, which is broadcast over 9 PA, Port Moresby, every afternoon, Mondays to Fridays, should be very interesting.

The news is given in English, Motu and Pidgin, followed by a very interesting programme of native piusic, etc., which is enjoyed by quite a few Europeans. But how many natives?

The bulk of the native population lives in villages which do not possess electricity or radios. The next biggest percentage is employed as house servants, and store and club attendants, and a small percentage as public servants and messengers in the Administration. The latter, even if they posses a radio, are still at work while the session is on the air, and the former either in their boi-houses or on walkabout.

A privileged few are allowed to switch on their employer’s radio — if they are interested!

We don’t know the exact amount of money paid in salaries to those re sponsible for the session, taut an advertisement for a programme officer (education) for the ABC

(who is shortly taking over branch from the Education De;; ment) is perhaps a pointer.

The appointment will be salary within the range £1,602-£ p.a., plus a District Allowano £275 p.a. (married) or £175 (sin A special allowance at the rai

per annum is also payable to ied officers in respect of each ileted period of two years ser in the Territory, ties are organising and super % the presentation of pro mes for the native peoples in sh and in their own languages, ding educational material; act is liaison with the Administra of Papua-New Guinea con ng these programmes and ing out such other programme s as may be required. b value of radio as a medium tting the message of civilisation s to these people cannot be nised, but why does not the nistration go the whole hog provide simple receivers for ;es—and make available others inimum cost to town natives? ■s is done in Western Samoa some parts of Africa. The esian “Saucepan Radio” is mown. It is a simple, tamper receiver, tuned permanently ie wavelength, and looks, as lame implies, like a saucepan ied up on its side on two small (Probably its prototype was from an old saucepan by some ious District Officer). irould all cost money, of course; tie present service costs money -and most of the message is m the jungle air. the programmes were put on ?ht, they might have a bigger mg audience, also.

Br spending some time in il. NG, Captain William Curtis, to His Excellency the High tnssioner for the Western £, returned to Honiara in April.