Radio Jockey Czarina Balba, popularly known as DJ Chacha, could not hold back her tears as she lamented the imminent shutdown of the station she worked for over a decade, MOR 101.9, as ABS-CBN begins closing its operations due to its franchise denial.
DJ Chacha was interviewed on “Failon Ngayon” of DZMM last Thursday. She said they were gathered on Wednesday right after the company-wide retrenchment was announced. They were gathered for a meeting which was served with painful truth; MOR 101.9 was going off the air for good by August 31.
MOR’s closure came after 70 of lawmakers decided to junk ABS-CBN’s plea to renew their franchise. This rejection was a huge blow to the media giant’s employees, leaving them unemployed in the middle of a pandemic.
DJ Chacha added that there are many MOR stations in the entire nation, not only in the Metro, and each of them is awaiting their fate as well.
“Kami po ay under ng ABS-CBN, kami ang FM station dito sa Maynila pero hindi lang kami, marami pong MOR sa buong Pilipinas. Hindi lang sa Maynila ang mga mawawalan ng trabaho. So kagabi sinabi ng mga boss namin… na hanggang August 31 next month na lang ang MOR,” said DJ Chacha.
DJ Chacha shared that this is the first time she has cried her heart out in the entire process of fighting for their network’s renewal. MOR has been her home for 12 years now.
“Sa buong proseso nang pakikipaglaban natin sa prangkisa ng ABS-CBN, kagabi ako unang umiyak. Nandito pa ako, may DZMM pa. Pero sa hindi nakakaalam, hindi ito usaping pera lang. Tahanan po ang MOR for 12 years. Sorry,” an emotional DJ Chacha said.
DJ Chacha counted all their struggles before reaching the number one spot for an FM station. All she wants now is to go on the air in the actual radio booth of the station in the last 45 days before the closure.
“Kasi gusto namin hanggang sa huling araw ay nandoon kami sa loob ng bahay namin. Siyempre lahat kami ganito ang nararamdaman ngayon,” said DJ Chacha.
“So hanggang August 31 na lang. Kagabi kinakausap ko si Lord, napapatanong ako bakit, pero naniniwala naman ako na mayroon siyang magandang plano para sa ating lahat. So masakit, masakit kasi hindi retrenchment ang nangyari, nawala talaga ang MOR, wala na munang MOR. Naniniwala naman ako na makakabalik kami. ‘Di ko lang sigurado kung kailan,” said DJ Chacha.
DJ Chacha also expressed her sentiments on her official Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/chacha1019/posts/4591851284162108
MOR (My Only Radio) is a national brand of FM radio stations operated by media conglomerate ABS-CBN. MOR stations primarily play contemporary OPM music, as well as a radio drama and talk content (news content via TV Patrol Regional is also available on selected stations). MOR started in 2001 as the FM brand of ABS-CBN Regional and operates 15 stations in the Philippines.
MOR was launched on July 14, 2001, in Cagayan de Oro City. MOR wasn’t launched in Manila until it made a major change in mid-2013 when the company finally relaunched long-time independent station DWRR-FM (101.9 MHz) as the network’s flagship station and effectively made MOR a truly national brand.
On June 1, 2019, MOR stations in Manila, Cebu, and Baguio expanded its video streaming platform as exclusive channels to cable TV subscription service Sky Cable in their respective cities.
Moreover, MOR has 18 regional stations that are on the verge of closure once August 31 comes.
- MOR 101.9 My Number One and Only Radio For Life! Manila
- MOR 95.5 My Only Radio Ditoy Latta! Laoag
- MOR 94.3 My Only Radio Araratan! Dagupan
- MOR 103.1 My Only Radio Dayta Ah! Baguio
- MOR 91.3 My Only Radio For Life! Isabela
- MOR 99.7 My Only Radio For Life! Española
- MOR 99.9 My Only Radio Sikat! Puerto Princesa
- MOR 93.5 My Only Radio Yan ang MORe! Naga
- MOR 93.9 My Only Radio Pirmi Na! Legazpi
- MOR 91.1 My Only Radio Abaw Pwerte! Iloilo
- MOR 101.5 My Only Radio Sikat! Bacolod
- MOR 97.1 My Only Radio Lupig Sila! Cebu
- MOR 94.3 My Only Radio Sikat! Tacloban
- MOR 91.9 My Only Radio Chuy Kay’ Bai! Cagayan de Oro
- MOR 101.1 My Only Radio OK Kaayo! Davao
- MOR 92.7 My Only Radio For Life! General Santos
- MOR 95.1 My Only Radio For Life! Cotabato
- MOR 98.7 My Only Radio Nah Ese Vale! Zamboanga
On May 5, 2020, ABS CBN, including all MOR Stations stopped operation due to the cease and desist order issued by the National Telecommunications Commission.
On August 31, MOR will cease operations due to the retrenchment of its employees of ABS-CBN.
