Arson Attack: Jobs of Our 550 Employees Intact—TVC

The management of TVC Communications has denied media reports making the rounds that it has reduced its workforce following the attack on its studio by some hoodlums during the #EndSARs protests in Lagos.

The broadcast platform was touched by some people last week. During the incident, the company’s main studio and some vehicles in the compound were burnt.

The situation resulted in the television station going off-air for some days and it was speculated that some of the employees would be laid off because of the incident.

Television Continental, which is operated by the firm, only resumed broadcasting last weekend at another location, while efforts are being made to rebuild the studio from the scratch.

During the week, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos State, paid a visit to the Ikosi-Ketu head office of TVC Communications to see the extent of the damage done to the company.

In the past few days, it has been reported that TVC has sacked about 250 members of staff just three years after it fired about 145 persons from the organisation.

But Mr Andrew Hanlon, CEO of TVC Communications, said in a statement at the weekend that reports of the company firing 250 staff were untrue.

According to him, all the 550 persons on the organisation’s payroll still have their jobs intact, noting that there are no plans to send anyone away because of the unfortunate incident.

“The CEO of TVC Communications, owners of TVC, TVC News, Max FM (Lagos and Abuja) and Adaba FM, Andrew Hanlon, has stated today (at the weekend) that the jobs of all its 550 employees are safe and secure.

“Mr Andrew Hanlon made the announcement on the foot of ‘misleading reports’ which suggested that 250 jobs were lost following an arson attack on its studious in Ikosi-Ketu, Lagos last week,” a part of the statement noted.

“The reference to 250 jobs related to those of our employees who had been physically displaced due to the fire at our premises, this does not mean those same employees had subsequently lost their jobs due to the fire.

“All of our staff remain with us and have merely now been relocated to temporary offices while we build a bigger and better television studio complex,” Mr Hanlon was quoted as saying in the statement.

TVC is one of the national television stations in Nigeria.

It is believed that the broadcast platform was attacked by thugs because of its link with Mr Bola Ahmed Tinubu, national leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).