RADIO listeners are holding a demonstration tomorrow morning after St Paul’s community radio station Ujima was shut out of its studios.
Broadcasters say they faced police, court officials and representatives of a utility company after electricity bills went unpaid at the radio offices on Wilder Street.
Organisers at Ujima say they have paid their bills to Ceed ltd, the company which leases the building from the council.
But a spokesperson for Ceed said there was a running dispute with Ujima over bills and attempts to negotiate with the radio station over a contract had been unsuccessful.
Ujima has organised a demonstration at 97-107 Wilder Street tomorrow at 10am and is asking Bristol City Council to step in and resolve the dispute.
The station managed to rescue some equipment before being locked out on Tuesday and has been broadcasting music only, from the house of a local intern.
Paulette North, who has a show on the station, said it was essential the community station was saved and live broadcasts started again.
She said: “We would like the council to intervene because we are between a rock and a hard place.
“A vital community service has been taken away here and we need to ensure that it is now restored.”
The council said it was aware of a long-standing dispute over unpaid bills but was not able to intervene, nor had it, yet, launched legal proceedings.
A spokesperson for Ceed said there was currently no contract with Ujima over rents at the building and a dispute over payment of bills was unresolved.
He said Ujima used a high amount of electricity and the station was not paying their fair share.
He said: “Despite cautioning them on so many occasions on not paying a fair share of their bills, they have avoided having any discussions to address the issue of mounting bill.
“In any case, since the disconnection, we have been working round the clock to ensure that electric supply is restored possibly by Monday with the cooperation of all the tenants.”
The council said it was aware of a long-standing dispute over unpaid bills but was not able to intervene, nor had it, yet, launched legal proceedings.
A spokesman said: “We are aware of the current situation and there has been an offer on the table for some while now for Ujima to re-locate to St Pauls Family and Learning Centre. We would welcome the input of their energy and enthusiasm there.
“While Bristol City Council owns the freehold of Wilder House, a community organisation called Ceed is the longstanding leaseholder with Ujima subletting office space, along with a number of other organisations, from them.
“We have been aware of an issue with unpaid bills by the leaseholder for a while and are endeavouring to resolve the situation although we are currently not at the stage of formal legal action.
“While we are of course sympathetic to the station, which is financially supported by the local authority and which is in the current predicament through no fault of its own, we are not able to intervene financially, nor would it be appropriate to do so in these circumstances.
“We will continue the dialogue with Ujima and the offer of alternative office space remains open.”
Rob Telford, councillor for the Ashley ward said: “Ujima Radio is a vital community resource for St Pauls. We need to find a new permanent home for Ujima so that they can continue to serve the local community through their work.”
Demonstration planned after radio station Ujima ‘shut out of studioss’ | Bristol Post.