Latest update April 24th, 2024 12:59 AM
May 21, 2013 News
– says Govt. trying to justify an “indefensible position”
Despite Government’s attempt to justify the manner in which former President, Bharrat Jagdeo, issued several radio licences in 2011, days before he ended his two terms in office, there is evidence that frequencies were given away without proper procedures followed.
A Partnership For National Unity (APNU) said yesterday, that the administration’s excuse that the
former Head of State used his executive powers to make the decision, was always an improper one as the country’s resources cannot be allocated without rules and procedures being followed.
APNU, which controls 26 seats in the Opposition’s majority, said it is now moving to the National Assembly to demand answers whether a number of persons who were granted licences actually had any applications on file at the time of their granting.
The 10-party coalition was yesterday responding to Government’s statement to the ‘Trinidad Express’ editorial two weekends ago. That editorial lashed the government over the allocations. The Express, a leading newspaper in the Twin-Island Republic, argued that government was attempting to cement its control of the media.
Trinidad Express, local and international media bodies and local diplomats have all been applying pressure on the Donald Ramotar government to review and even recall the licences until a review is done on how they were issued in the first place.
There is the belief that Jagdeo, in his last act of defiance to private media with whom he had a rocky relationship with, granted the licences.
Among the 11 persons and entities receiving permission to run radio stations were Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop, Jagdeo’s best friend; the Mirror Newspaper, which belongs to the ruling party; and Telcor Cultural and Broadcasting Inc, a company with close links to Natural Resources Minister, Robert Persaud, who just happens to be the nephew-in-law of the former President. The three received five frequencies each giving them countrywide control of the radio airwaves.
APNU and the Alliance For Change (AFC), the other Parliamentary Opposition party, are convinced that the other persons were only issued licences to cover up the true intent of Jagdeo…that is to gain control of the radio frequencies for his party.
Seven other persons, including businessman, Maxwell Thom of Wireless Connections, also received licences and one frequency each with their licences to broadcast, limiting them to specific areas.
Government, in a statement to the Trinidad Express, published Wednesday, said that Jagdeo used his discretionary powers under the Postal and Telegraph Act which controlled radio licences applications prior to the new Broadcasting Act of 2011. The new Act was signed into being by Jagdeo in September 2011.
He issued the licences days before the November 2011 General and Regional Elections.
Although the new Broadcasting Act was not in effect until last year when the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority was established in August, the Opposition is contending that Jagdeo broke a binding political agreement that no new radio licences would be issued until the Broadcast Authority was set up.
They admitted that persons, including those supportive of the government, were granted the licences.
Government also made it clear to the Trinidad Express that the licences were issued to persons who showed that they had the money that is needed to establish the radio stations.
However, Government has been extremely silent on Thom, whose business was floundering in 2011 when the licences were issued. Thom, through Wireless Connections, once a popular mobile phone outlet, faced the court for outstanding monies and a number of prominent businesses have said that he is indebted to them.
Yesterday, APNU’s Parliamentarian, Joe Harmon, who is the Shadow Minister of Telecommunications, noting the reports on Thom, insisted that the coalition was highly worried over the licences. These are in the control of mainly the ruling party and the Opposition will be placed in an unfair position, especially during elections.
“The resources of a country are not the personal property of the President or anybody. This is a national resource. It is not within your power to share it out to your friends. There is emerging evidence that some of the persons do not have money. How were they granted a licence?”
Harmon believes that Government has been caught with its “pants down” and is hard pressed to defend an “indefensible” position.
“Nobody in this part of the world would accept this kind of reasoning. This is making the country look bad. When you will send an explanation like that to the newspaper in Trinidad… what would they think of us here in Guyana? It is exporting a certain level of mediocrity… of incompetence.
“That is what we are doing when we are preparing these off-the-cuffs answers to established institutions.”
Harmon said that even if the previous Postal and Telegraph Act said financial wherewithal was one of the conditions to grant a radio licence, it would hardly be the only reason.
“This excuse about the Postal and Telegraph Act was concocted after the fact to justify an improper act by Jagdeo.”
Harmon said that the government in attempting to justify the licences, has even been sending “little messages” on the emails using the “same foolish arguments that granting of the licences is keeping with old Act and that it was a pledge to break the radio licence monopoly. Everybody knows Jagdeo shared the licences out to his friends and his party.”
The details of the licences only came to light after AFC demanded answers in the National Assembly. The answers were provided earlier this year, immediately sparking street protests by established, private media houses which were ignored by Jagdeo.
These include Kaieteur News, Guyana’s largest daily; Capitol News; WRHM Channel Seven; CNS Channel Six; HBTV Channel Nine and Stabroek News.
Two court cases have been filed by Kaieteur News and the Guyana Media Proprietors Association and Enrico Woolford, seeking to quash the licences.
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