The entire Gambia media fraternity is shattered by the sudden death of veteran radio journalist George Christensen.
Mr Christensen who was proprietor of former Radio 1 FM, the first independent FM station in The Gambia, died in Dakar Friday evening. He is reported to have collapsed and died at the Leopold Sedar Senghore International Airport in Dakar where he was waiting for his flight to Banjul.
Commonly known as Uncle George, Mr Christensen who is an experienced and seasoned broadcaster since 1974, trained some of the finest journalists in and outside the country.
A doyen of Gambian journalism, he is described by many as not only a mentor but a teacher and a critique who was always giving candid opinion on the profession.
Radio 1 FM was a private radio station in The Gambia which played music and emphasized issues relating to political and economic development as well as basic civic education programs. The broadcasting station served the west coast of the country which is mostly the Kombo (KSMD) area. It was transmitting its signals on a broadcast frequency of 102.1 FM. The 1994 coup that brought the current President Yahya Jammeh to power was announced on this radio.
Arrest
Among first victims of the current government’s infringement on freedom of speech and the press, Mr Christensen was on October 23rd, 2001, arrested and taken to the NIA headquarters in Banjul. He was released a few hours later after being questioned about his radio station’s financial situation.
Radio attack
On August 10, 2001 during ungodly hours, some disgruntled and still unidentified group, probably acting on orders took it upon themselves to attack and burn down Radio One FM station.
A protective proprietor like a mother hen, Mr Christensen staunchly defended his ‘chicks’ and faced the assailants physically and sustained burns on his body. He was applauded by all for standing strong not to see his ‘brain-child’ go up in smoke without raising a finger. He shook off the arson attackers and took photos of the incident. The then Independent Newspaper published the pictures on its August 14, 2001 edition.
He was hospitalized for days. Shortly after that, one of his staff, Alieu Bah who earlier received a letter threatening his life had his house set on fire while he and his family were asleep. Neighbours helped put the fire before it caused serious damage.
Alhagie Jobe, Dakar
