PRESIDENT Bharrat Jagdeo will put together a committee to examine applications for radio licences, in light of a High Court ruling on the issue and the enactment of the Broadcast Bill. Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon made the announcement at his weekly post-Cabinet press briefing yesterday at the Office of the President complex in Georgetown.
“The President has decided to constitute the committee to begin the review of applicants for radio licences, according to his commitment publicly made in the context of the ruling from the High Court and particularly with the enactment of the Broadcast legislation,” the HPS said.
Dr. Luncheon said that the number of applications that the Committee has received and is considering at the moment is less than 100. He said that they number between 60 and 75.
Asked about the committee’s structure, Dr. Luncheon said that the actual composition of the committee has not yet been settled but some of the major players will be “the NFMU (National Frequency Management Unit), our director of Telecommunications and others.”
Government is obligated to pursue the applications that were before the President in accordance with a ruling that followed a previous litigation. Former television station owner, Anthony Vieira had taken the government to court over radio licences. Following this litigation, Government issued a public notice saying that the broadcast licence application process had been closed.