THERE are outbursts from certain quarters that lament the closure of Stabroek News (SN) due to non-payment by the government for advertisements. A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Member of Parliament, Sherod Duncan and APNU/Working People’s Alliance (WPA) extremist, Tacuma Ogunseye, have written that debt caused the paper to close. Mr. Harry Hergash, in a letter in SN, has attributed declining governmental revenue as a factor.
The reality in today’s Guyana, and today’s world, is that newspapers cannot adequately compete in a world that bears no resemblance to five decades ago. Before I go into my argument proper, two things I need to put in print. I repeat here what I have said on the Freddie Kissoon Show. I prefer to see more newspapers in Guyana than less. I hope SN survives. If there are donations being solicited to save the newspaper, I will give my two cents.
But as I wrote before, I do not think that if the SN survives, it should continue with the same ownership (the DeCaires siblings) because that ownership is into extremist politics identical with Fox News and I do not think its current editor, Anand Persaud, should be retained. An editor cannot be so insanely hostile in his political views.
The second thing is, I believe the government should pay its debts to SN as soon as possible. I cannot think of any human mind that will disagree with my position. Governments all over the world are slow to facilitate payments and I believe bureaucratic sloth is the reason for non-payment, but it should be done as soon as possible.
When I read what Duncan and Ogunseye have written about the connection between government ads and SN’s demise, I can see how the APNU+AFC was a complete failure and had to die. I can see why the Guyana Chronicle removed Duncan as CEO. And I can see why the WPA failed as a political party with people like Ogunseye in its leadership.
Common sense in the start-up of a business would tell you that your product cannot depend on a one-dimensional market. If you are going to sell a new type of fruit juice, then it is stupid to respond to an offer by a company to buy all your bottles each day. Two things will kill your business: if the company goes out of business or if the CEO makes an edict that water is better to give the staff than a sugar-based product.
The SN has been publishing for more than 25 years a Friday supplement on business in Guyana, where businesses are highlighted and advice offered. How then can a business base its existence on income from one source? Secondly, where were the investments in SN during its golden age when it was making money?
It appears that what SN did was to offer free business advice to entrepreneurs, but wrong advice to itself. I don’t know anything much about business, but at a commonsensical level, the world knows and has known the past umpteen years that profits are invested. Do you know that one famous Portuguese-owned business in this country has property holdings that are beyond imagination?
The Alphonso business company in Essequibo that deals in gold and coconuts has gone into hotel ownership. The Beharry group has gone into fast food and insurance. Take a look at any family-owned business from the 1950s that has survived into the 21st century; they have spread their wings into other ventures.
I was associated with Kaieteur News since it was founded. I saw how sales and advertisements were making Glen Lall rich. The paper began a New York edition that brought in substantial revenue from advertisements. But Mr. Lall was spreading his tentacles into importation, property and the retail trade. Journalist, Leonard Gildarie said on the Freddie Kissoon Show that Lall will keep Kaieteur News going because he will subsidise it from other investments he has.
Those who are smitten by SN and think it was the best thing after sliced bread are too sycophantic to write that, over the years, SN was running a poor business. It was doing that because SN’s ownership operated with an entitlement mentality. Leonard Craig gave a brief account on the Freddie Kissoon Show of that mentality.
He said when he was head of the broadcasting authority, SN applied for a radio license, but its application was faulty. He said he informed SN’s manager that if she comes in, the corrections will be made and the license will be given, since that decision was already made from above. Craig said the manager failed to show. And Craig put it over nicely. SN didn’t turn up because SN felt that it was special and entitled.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.
