Following the recent attack on the headquarters of Television Continental, TVC, in Lagos where the complex housing the station was razed by hood
Following the recent attack on the headquarters of Television Continental, TVC, in Lagos where the complex housing the station was razed by hoodlums, no fewer than 250 staff have lost their jobs, an official has said. Andrew Hanlon, the Chief Executive Officer, said more than 500 employees are struggling to work, while 250 staff have been rendered jobless.
Last week, an attack was launched on TVC by arsonists where the two stations, TVC and MAX FM, were burnt and several vehicles including cars belonging to the workers burnt. The two stations were attacked following the October 20 Lekki shooting, where soldiers opened fire on peaceful #EndSARS protesters, killing some and injuring others.
Hoodlums took over the streets of Lagos the following day, burning state and private property. Property linked to Bola Tinubu, former Lagos governor, were targeted. The media stations, which are located at Ikosi-Ketu area of Lagos, are owned by Tinubu and were burnt by the hoodlums.
Stating the impact of the attack on the stations, Mr Hanlon said transmission gadgets, state-of-the-art studios, production rooms, operational vehicles of TVC and cars belonging to members of staff were burnt. The Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, took a tour round the stations on Thursday where he saw the level of the destruction.
“After the rioters invaded our premises and set the place on fire, stone buildings in the premises survived. But the main transmission building was completely destroyed and it was the hub of our operations,” the manager said.
Hanlon said the main auditorium, which housed three studios, three control rooms, three master control rooms and a transmission laboratory, was completely razed. He added that the stations have suffered losses worth millions of dollars as people’s hard work and investments were destroyed in less than an hour.
Hanlon said the employees and management of TVC and Max FM are traumatised following the devastation of their workplace and personal property by hoodlums. He said the management will ensure that employees are looked after despite the fact that their means of livelihood has been threatened.
Meanwhile, Max FM, a subsidiary of TVC, came back on air few days after the attack.
