Govt:

THE GOVERNMENT yesterday dismissed suggestions that it ever attempted to deny the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha a radio licence. In a statement yesterday, the Ministry of Public Administration and Information refuted what it described as several “misleading and inaccurate statements” following the recent Privy Council ruling in favour of the Maha Sabha and Central Broadcasting Services Ltd (CBSL).

The ministry said any suggestion that Government attempted to mislead the courts, as may have been mooted in the decision of the Privy Council and in the local media, “is entirely misconceived” because it remains committed to the rule of law, transparency and fairness in all of its affairs.

The ministry said the State went to great lengths to ensure that it meticulously complied with every order of the court in this matter, “even to the point of deferring action of the Cabinet.”

The ministry said it was in direct compliance with the court that a May 17, 2005 letter (referred to in the Privy Council’s judgment) from its permanent secretary was dispatched to the Maha Sabha and CBSL.

The ministry said the facts of the matter are that in response to the Maha Sabha’s radio licence application in September 2000, the recommendation was made by the then director of telecommunications (Winston Ragbir) in December 2000 but “not acted upon by the previous government.”

Contacted yesterday, ministry officials told Newsday that in 2000, the telecommunications portfolio changed hands three times under ministers Ralph Maraj, Dr Roodal Moonilal and Lindsay Gillette. Following the 18-18 electoral tie in December 2001 and the PNM assuming office in that same month, the officials said the telecom portfolio fell under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Tertiary Education which was headed by Hedwidge Bereaux at that time. They were uncertain what happened to radio licence applications between that time and the December 2002 general elections which the PNM returned to office.

The Public Administration and Information Ministry assumed the telecom portfolio in 2003 and ministry officials described the state of record-keeping in the telecom division was “precarious at best.”

The ministry said in spite of these deficiencies, it moved expeditiously to review and process all outstanding radio licence applications. The ministry said it appointed a technical committee to assist in this task which was completed between May and December 2003. In the case of the Maha Sabha’s radio licence, the ministry said Government made repeated attempts to obtain the necessary information required for the completion of the appellants’ licence application and its lawful processing.

The ministry reiterated that Government gave all applicants an equal opportunity to complete their radio applications prior to final recommendations being made on their applications. The ministry added that it was important to note that Cabinet in deliberating on the recommendations of its technical committee, accepted those recommendations “without modification.” “To impute any bias to the action of the State in the context of this matter is therefore wholly unfounded,” the ministry said.