Ms Tsakani Baloyi is the new station manager for Munghana Lonene FM. The announcement was made during an event at the SABC Limpopo’s premises in Polokwane last Wednesday.

The appointment came after the resignation of Mandla Soko in the last quarter of 2007. The station’s marketing manager, Tshamaano Nepfumbada, has been acting in the position ever since.

Ms Baloyi holds a diploma in public administration from the University of Zululand, a BA Degree from UNISA, and a BTec from the Tshwane University of Technology. She was born and bred in Giyani.

She said she had great expectations for Munghana Lonene FM. “I have a vision to increase listenership and ensure that the children do not lose the cream of the Xitsonga language,” said Tsakani. Speaking to the listeners of the station, Tsakani said she was grateful to be working at a time that much had been achieved at the station, more so in terms of the listenership. “With listenership at this level, one of my focus areas will be to maintain listeners’ loyalty and increase it to over 1.7 million. With the team spirit prevalent at Mughana, this target will be easy to reach,” she said.

She joined the SABC 13 years ago and in 1997, she became promotional officer for the station she is currently managing, which came two years after working for SABC News as news reader (Xitsonga). In 1998, she went back to the news office to join the current affairs team (Tiko a xi Etleli) as producer/presenter.

In 2000, she left Polokwane for TV Park to occupy a position as a news researcher, and later on in 2003, as news writer for Xitsonga TV bulletin on SABC 2.

In June 2006, she became executive producer for Xitsonga TV News on SABC 2.

To Tsakani, the Limpopo is an oyster, and her return was blissful, though it came with some sacrifices. She has left her house and children in Johannesburg just to come back and work for her favourite radio station. “I have this passion for the station MLfm and the Xitsonga language, so the one-way ticket wouldn’t have worked for me,” said Tsakani to clarify her move from Johannesburg back to Polokwane. She added that this sense of belonging to the station has a large part in her heart, prompting her to make such a sacrifice.