Following the official re-launch of Power 104.5 FM in Freeport on Monday, guests are seen taking part in the cake cutting. Shown from left are: Stanley Pinder, Deputy General Manager of the Northern Service and Radio; Rev. Dr. William Thompson, Chairman of the Board of Directors; the Hon. Dr. Bernard Nottage, Minister of National Security and Minister responsible for Broadcasting; Mrs. Diana Swann, General Manager of the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas; and the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville, Minister for Grand Bahama. (BIS Photo/Andrew Miller)

FREEPORT, Grand Bahama – ZNS Network on Monday re-launched Power 104.5 FM and rebranded 810 AM, as a gospel station, at the Bahamas Government Complex, when Minister of National Security and Minister with responsibility for Broadcasting, the Hon. Dr. Bernard Nottage, was on hand to officially turn on the switch.

Minister Nottage said Monday marked a new day for the Corporation as the Northern Service becomes more responsive to the needs of the Northern Bahamas. Innovations are underway as the Corporation carries out its mission to inform, educate and entertain the people of The Bahamas.

Plans for Power 104.5 FM Station have been on the horizon for the Northern Service for some time now. In 2006, he said, the staff held a number of fund- raisers to purchase the transmitter. Now in mid-2015, it is being used to launch Power 104.5, having been utilized for only 810 AM in previous years.

“This re-launch, today, of 104.5 FM did not come about by happenstance. It is the result of strategic planning and decision-making on the part of the Corporation’s management team. It is the result of a decisive and proactive approach being taken to provide broadcasting services so as to allow the Corporation to capitalize on any surge in the economy of Freeport and the Northern Bahamas,” Dr. Nottage said.

The aim of the re-launched 104.5 FM is to capture a younger audience playing a wide variety of music. Radio 810 AM will gradually be phased into a gospel station, taking into account the growing community and will also reach residents in East Grand Bahama and Abaco.

The Minister said, “The changes at the Corporation that will result from these two radio stations will be a clear demonstration the Northern Service is catering to the needs of everyone in the Northern Bahamas – primarily Grand Bahama, Abaco and Bimini.”

Going over some of the history of the Northern Service: it started in 1973, and at that time, there was only one government-owned radio station in the country. “Some 42 years later, broadcasting has been transformed in ways that are unprecedented.”

Minister Nottage added, “it is clear that in this new and dynamic 21^st Century Broadcasting environment, it cannot be business as usual for ZNS in New Providence nor at the Northern Service. This ceremony today is, therefore, testament that the Government is seeking to put in place the environment for the Northern Service to succeed in the liberalized, broadcasting and communications environment that exists today.

Top LEFT: Minister of National Security and Minister responsible for Broadcasting, the Hon. Dr. Bernard Nottage addressed the guests gathered for the official relaunch of Power 104.5 FM in Freeport on Monday. Top RIGHT: Dr. the Hon. Bernard Nottage, Minister of National Security and Minister with responsibility for Broadcasting, was on hand on Monday for the official re-launch of 104.5 FM. Shown from left are: Minister for Grand Bahama, Dr. the Hon. Michael Darville; General Manager of the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas, Mrs. Diana Swann; Minister Nottage; Rev. Dr. William Thompson, Chairman of the Board of Directors; Mrs. Valencia Bartlett, Deputy Director of Radio; and His Excellency Calsey Johnson, High Commissioner to Canada and Former Executive Chairman. Bottom LEFT: Power 104.5 FM was re-launched on Monday in Freeport before Minister of National Security and Minister responsible for Broadcasting, the Hon. Dr. Bernard Nottage (fifth from right); Minister for Grand Bahama, the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville (right); High Commissioner to Canada and former Executive Chairman of the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas, His Excellency Calsey Johnson (third from right) with Mrs. Johnson next to him; and General Manager of the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas, Mrs. Diana Swann (fourth from right). Bottom RIGHT: Mrs. Diana Swann, General Manager of the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas on Monday described the re-launch of Power 104.5 FM as “a dream come true” and one of her proudest moments. (BIS Photos/Andrew Miller)

“The Government is doing so by providing the necessary financial capital and human resources for the Northern Service to function efficiently, effectively and profitably in the competitive environment in which the Corporation finds itself.”

Since bringing on Mrs. Diana Swann, a trained veteran broadcaster and experienced manager as the new General Manager of the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas, Minister Nottage said the Corporation has undergone restructuring with staff and departmental requirements so that operations are enhanced and more effective. This resulted in Stanley Pinder, Deputy General Manager for the Northern Service, assuming responsibility for Radio in the Northern Service and in New Providence.

He said as the Minister responsible for Broadcasting, “my objective is to ensure that the Government’s policies and plans for broadcasting are carried out and that the structures are put in place that will set the Corporation on a path to profitability and away from its continued dependence on the Government to sustain it as a viable entity.”

The loan has been secured by the Government so that the Corporation may undertake various capital projects. The challenge for the employees of the Corporation is to be able to meet the obligations of the loan without the Government having to do so. 

“If ZNS is to remain a viable and competitive entity in broadcasting, you will have to produce more creative, imaginative and enticing programmes. Your marketing strategy must be cutting edge, unique and savvy and; most of all, you must learn how to do more with less due to all of the other priorities of the Government.”

The competition is not in this country, but in the United States as well. The station, he said, must see itself as one and produce more programmes that are aired and viewed in New Providence and the Northern Bahamas.

In so doing, he said the staff must find ways to keep people tuned in. Addressing the staff members, he said, “You must have knowledge and skills that are transferable. You must have a solid education; you must be trained, creative, talented thinkers; you must be ambitious, energetic, flexible and productive. You must be accountable, responsible, team players, who are workable, predictable, cooperative, pleasant and kindhearted. You must be well-groomed, well-presented, well-mannered; exceptional; and, all of the other good words. Yes, in this new environment that is being cultivated at ZNS, you must be all of these qualities rolled into one.

“The Government can settle for no less of a person at its Broadcasting Corporation. This calls for continuous training and development. The Government will assist with your training, but you are also expected to invest in your own training and development so that you can be ready to take advantage of all of the opportunities that will become available at the Northern Service and in New Providence.”

Also present were Minister for Grand Bahama the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville; High Commissioner to Canada and former Executive Chairman of the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas His Excellency Calsey Johnson; Permanent Secretary for the Ministry for Grand Bahama Melvin Seymour; Chairman of the Board of Directors Rev. Dr. William Thompson along with other board members; General Manager of the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas Mrs. Diana Swann; Deputy General Manager of the Northern Service and Radio, Stanley Pinder; and other invited guests.