Government approved radio licences for 11 entities last year, including Television Guyana (TVG) Channel 28, Hits and Jams Entertainment and the National Television Network (NTN), according to Prime Minister Samuel Hinds.
He made this disclosure in a written response to a question from AFC MP Khemraj Ramjattan that was circulated in the National Assembly yesterday.
Approval of requests for licences was also given to the Matthews Ridge Community Council, Little Rock Televi-sion Station, Alfro Alphonso and Sons Enterprise, New Guyana Company Limited (NGCL), Wireless Connec-tions, Rudy Grant, Telecor and Cultural Broadcasting Inc and Linden Wireless Communication Network. When it acceded to office in 1992, the government had promised to liberalise \the broadcasting sector but it took almost 20 years before new licences were finally issued.
Hinds, also asked about the criteria used to assess the applications, explained that the entities with applications dating over five years were contacted and asked to confirm their continued interest. Only those who re-confirmed were considered, he said.
Experience and capability in broadcasting and communication fields, the needs of the community, financial capability, the merits of broadcasting and business proposals were among the criteria that were used to assess the applications. Preference was also given to citizens while background checks and current and previous business ventures of the applicants were also considered.
Hinds added that no formal scoring system was used to consider the applications, which were judged on their own merits.
In January, government spokesman Dr Roger Luncheon, responding to reports that those awarded were “government-friendly individuals,” said “If government friends are financially secure, if they have the technical means and are fit and proper… I can imagine they would overpopulate the list of recipients.”
He noted that the president, in the absence of the Guyana National Broad- casting Authority, had the responsibility for issuing the licences.
In an answer to AFC MP Cathy Hughes, Hinds said that a number of persons were consulted in the evaluation of the applicants for the radio licences.
These included Dr Luncheon; press and publicity officer to President Donald Ramotar, Kwame McCoy; network administrator, Cabinet office, Office of the President, Roy Jadonandan and head, project cycle management division, Ministry of Finance, Tarchand Balgobin.
There has been controversy over the awards. Guyana Publications Inc (GPI), publishers of Stabroek News and the Sunday Stabroek was among the applicants for a radio licence.
It received no formal response from the National Frequency Manage-ment Unit to which it had tendered the application and was referred to the Office of the President for an answer. Within the parameters outlined by the PM, GPI would have been well-qualified having been in the newspaper business for over 25 years. Yesterday was the first occasion that the entire list was provided. Dr Luncheon had provided only some of the names.
Former television station proprietor Tony Vieira has argued that the award of licences by former President Bharrat Jagdeo should be considered null and void as it violated an agreement with the late former President Desmond Hoyte for awards to be made only after a National Broadcasting Authority was established. The authority is still to be established.
