Experts of the RPR group on media reform draw attention to the fact that the reform of the public broadcasting system is under the threat of disruption due to the actions of the officials of the State Fiscal Service. Therefore, the public calls on the Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman to take the final stage of launch of an independent public broadcaster under his control.
Since 2014, Ukraine has been conducting the reform of public broadcasting to implement its commitments before the Council of Europe of 2003 and 2005 and to take a necessary step in the media space which is currently characterized by considerable monopolism and utter misbalance of program policy. Over the last two years, the necessary amendments to the laws on establishment of public broadcasting have been adopted, the regional offices of a united National Television Broadcasting Company (NTBC) have been set up, and the broadcasting network has been extended.
Over this entire period, the process of reforms has stumbled against the barriers, but it has almost entered the final straight. Having adopted the amendments to the resolution No. 567, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has removed the last legislative barriers in the process of reforming the NTBC.
However, the actions of the officials of the State Fiscal Service has put the entire reform under the threat of disruption, which might result in the delay of the public broadcasting launch in Ukraine for at least a year.
According to the available roadmap, PJSC “National Public Television and Radio Broadcasting Company of Ukraine” (UA:PSB) should be launched on January 1, 2017. To this end, all legal entities of the former state television and radio broadcasting companies (STRBC) should have been terminated in September, while the State Property Fund should determine a balance sheet value to be included into the statutory capital of PJSC “UA:PSB.”
Nevertheless, this process has not been finished on time, as the State Fiscal Service has not yet waived objections regarding the National Radio Broadcasting Company of Ukraine, the STRBC “Crimea”, and Sevastopol RTRBC. The bodies of the State Fiscal Service ignore not only the notifications about the legal succession of all commitments, but also the acts of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine regulating the issues of the temporarily occupied territories.
We have faced blatant irresponsibility of executors of the State Fiscal Service which has jeopardized fulfillment of Ukraine’s international commitments. We believe that such actions of the State Fiscal Service bear the risk of unreasonable expenses, provide grounds for social tension, as nearly 8 thousand employees of the NPTRBCU will no longer be paid starting from January 1, 2017, as well as constitute a tremendous blow to the reputation of the whole country.
Therefore, the RPR group experts call on the Prime Minister of Ukraine to set up a special working group headed by the specialized deputy prime minister, and to charge this group with preparing a timeline and an action plan of the final stage of the reform as soon as possible, determining the agencies and the officials responsible for each item and ensuring permanent control over its implementation.
Establishment of public broadcasting will definitely become a breakthrough in the media sphere, demonstrate the political will to implement long-lasting commitments of the state to the international community, and enable the public to receive high-quality and non-biased information and intellectual products. Therefore, we are looking forward to a well-coordinated work of the governmental agencies.