PNG's East Sepik Governor Allan Bird Urges Boycott of Telikom-Linked Media Following Journalist Suspension
East Sepik Governor Allan Bird has spoken out against government pressures on journalists in Papua New Guinea. “Journalist Cullighan Tanda was suspended after interviewing me,” Bird revealed, noting his long history with FM100 since 2003 when “Roger Hau’ofa personally flew to Madang for our first interview.”
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| PNG's East Sepik Governor Allan Bird Urges Boycott of Telikom-Linked Media Following Journalist Suspension |
Bird remained loyal to FM100 through the transition to Douglas Dimagi as host and into Cullighan’s era. He highlighted, “One of my recent interviews with Cullighan attracted FM100’s highest audience ever.” Cullighan reached out unexpectedly for help on a show, and Bird responded.
He criticized FM100’s management, saying, “I had met their CEO beforehand and expected any issues to be addressed then, but that did not happen.” Bird also shared that he has spoken with Cullighan, “offering advice and awaiting his decision.”
Highlighting wider concerns, Bird referenced “an EMTV reporter who was also terminated after covering a Section 145 court story,” which he said is “a worrying pattern.”
Bird called for a peaceful public response: “I urge all Papua New Guineans to boycott advertisements on EMTV and FM100, both linked to Telikom PNG.” He added, “We must also switch away from Telikom’s phone services.”
He announced his own break with Telikom, saying, “I will move all my business to Digicel and Vodafone. Enough is enough — it’s time to take a stand.”
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