IT seems that the agenda of the combined opposition with their one-seat majority is to get back at the PPP for the past 19 years of political domination by engaging in what is increasingly becoming “a tyranny of the opposition.”  A tyranny of the ruling majority is being replaced by a tyranny of the opposition majority. State workers are hurt in the process and many may see the breadline with funding being denied to the state-controlled media. This is not mature politics.
It is hoped that the opposition will reconsider their opposition. In a tough economy, it is difficult to find a new job especially when the private sector is not hiring.  A better approach from the opposition would have been to reduce the money allocated for the media with stated conditionalities for usage as well as promises to increase the amount based on review of use and behaviour of the state media.  To completely eliminate the funding does a disservice to those who depend on the media for an income as well as for news.
We should not forget that the government media is the only source of news from rural and outlying areas.  To eliminate funding for the government media is to deny the nation news about what is happening in their own country.
State media is owned by the people and the state information outlets should be managed to best serve the interests of the nation informing the nation exactly of what is happening without any bias in favour of any party or individual.  There should be non-political management of not only the state media but the private media as well.  Very often, the state had to depend on its own media to get its message across because the opposition media has been so biased and anti-government.  Some of the private media (and opponents of the government) as well as critics engage in more propaganda, distortion, lies, innuendoes, attacks on personalities, etc. than have appeared in the state-controlled media.  Some of the bile that appears in one of the papers is worse than anything published in the Chronicle.
The opposition should not move to eliminate the state media as it serves a critical need providing a vital source of information for citizens who otherwise would not be informed of what is happening in the far corners of the country.
While the private media is providing important information to the nation, the state media provides greater detail and wider coverage. The private media is not everywhere because of financial constraints.  The state media, which is subsidised by government subventions, can afford to provide coverage of news and events in places that cannot be reached by the private media. A state-owned media is necessary to disseminate news on laws passed as well as on projects being undertaken by government.
I conducted a survey on the media last year.  People said while they don’t have utmost confidence in the state-owned media on certain information, they feel that NCN still provides the most widespread news coverage.
Lack of funding for the state media essentially means closing down the state media and putting people out of work because the state media cannot generate enough revenues to sustain operations. Even in the U.S., Canada, England and Trinidad, the state media are subsidised as it is in India and other democracies because of their important role. The opposition should not have cut off funding to the state-controlled media;innocent workers have been hurt by the opposition’s power play.
There is no need to silence the state media as it does not have a monopoly on information. Unlike under the dictatorship, there is no stranglehold on the media. State media play an important function providing news from areas where the private media cannot afford to visit.  In addition, state-controlled media are worth interacting with given that since the new political dispensation last December, the opposition has been able to get their message in the state-controlled media. Completely withdrawing funds from the state media is critically wrong and it is somewhat similar to when President Jagdeo withdrew ads from the Stabroek News as the action is also stifling the media – a very important one whose view should also be respected.  Closing the state media  is not something for the private media to cheer about.  A tit for tat is not the fitting response to the situation.