Attard’s political appointment promises to raise eyebrows
Charlot Zahra Anton Attard’s imminent appointment as the Chief Executive Officer at Public Broadcasting Services (PBS) would effectively open up the national broadcaster to criticism for appointing an individual deemed too close to the PN administration.
Lat Sunday, sister paper Illum revealed that Attard’s name had been mentioned at Castille as a possible successor, once outgoing CEO Albert Debono’s four-year contract with PBS expires on 1 June 2010.
Contacted by Illum, Attard had confirmed that he had already heard that his name was being touted as the new PBS CEO.
“I have also heard of the claims,” Attard told Illum on Sunday. “As recently as this week, I received another phone call of another person asking me about the matter.”
Illum also reported that Attard had already received the offer, but until now, he claimed that no such offer had been made. “I don’t know, but I would not exclude it,” Attard had told the sister paper when asked if he would accept the offer.
Attard’s appointment as PBS CEO would ensure “not only a person who is has good technical skills as well as experience in broadcasting, but would also enjoy absolute trust at Castille,” Illum’ s report added.
When Albert Debono was appointed CEO-designate in December 2006, succeeding Andrew Psaila as CEO after serving as Manager Corporate Services at PBS, the post was filled from one of the current managers at PBS.
A Ministry spokesperson told MaltaToday that Debono’s contract with PBS was signed on 1 June 2006 for a four-year period.
Asked whether PBS had ended Debono’s contract as PBS CEO or was it not renewed, a Ministry spokesperson told MaltaToday that the contract “will not be renewed when it expires”.
Asked why PBS had decided not to renew Debono’s contract or whether it was his decision not to renew, the Ministry spokesperson did not mince his words: “The Board of Directors of PBS decided not to renew the contract,” he told MaltaToday.
The normal practice for all Government-owned entities is to fill the post internally, and if this is not done, then registrants from Part One of the ETC jobless registry should be sent for an interview.
It is only then that the job vacancy is advertised externally.
However, if Attard is directly chosen as PBS CEO – as was done in the case of the appointment of Natalino Fenech as PBS News Editor – then the PBS Board of Directors was likely to do away with this practice.
Significantly, when asked whether PBS would be issuing a public call for applications for the post of CEO or will would the post be filled internally, as had happened with Albert Debono, who was already Manager Corporate Affairs at PBS, a spokesperson for the Education Ministry told MaltaToday: “The normal procedure in these cases will be followed”.
A Ministry spokesperson told Malta Today yesterday afternoon that Albert Debono’s contract as PBS CEO provided for a salary of €39,610 (Lm17,000) yearly gross salary.
He was also entitled for a performance bonus of not more than €6,600 (Lm2,000) per annum which would be paid only on the achievements of targets established by the Board of Directors on a yearly basis.
He was also entitled to free use of mobile phone and unlimited usage fees, a fuel allowance not exceeding €932 (Lm400) per annum, a communications allowance to a maximum of €394.50 (Lm150) to cover cost of cable and /or satellite television.
While in the service of the company, Debono also had a health insurance cover and a life insurance scheme.
However, when asked about the package that PBS was offering to its new CEO, the Ministry spokesperson was less forthcoming in his reply.
“This will be determined by the Board of Directors,” the Ministry spokesperson told MaltaToday.
Attard ‘a very trusted person’
Attard was the person that led Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi’s media campaign, with Attard taking care of every aspect of the Nationalist Party leader’s electoral campaign on the media.
He would be seen directing each public appearance and press conference that Gonzi gave during the month-long electoral campaign of 2008, and made sure that his public appearance went smooth.
He was the person who accompanied Nationalist candidate Jeffery Pullcino Orlando during his impromptu press conference in front of his land in Mistra exactly a week before the 8 March 2008 elections, when Opposition leader Dr Alfred Sant had revealed that Pullicino Orlando had applied to develop a disco in a Natura 2000 site
In 1998, Attard was behind the technical set-up of NET TV, the Nationalist Party’s television station, going for a high-end set-up which dwarfed Super ONE television, both in terms of picture clarity as well as in graphic content.
A few years later, in 2005, he left NET TV to launch Multiplus, a fledgling digital terrestrial television network with the express aim of taking on Melita Cable’s dominance in the television field.
The piatto forte for Multiplus, which had since taken over by the Tumas Group as majority shareholders, was the acquisition of the Italian Serie A rights for the 2005-2007 seasons.
However, the company did not manage to attract more than a few thousand subscribers, which made the whole project unfeasible. In February 2008, telecoms company GO, which was keen to get a TV platform as soon as possible, took over Multiplus, relaunching it a few months later as GO Plus TV.
Two years ago, in January 2008, Natalino Fenech, known for his close contacts with the Nationalist Party, was appointed PBS editor with an annual salary of €48,900 including perks – a salary that surpasses the annual salary of the Prime Minister.
Fenech, 47, had been accused by the Labour Party and press as being close to the Nationalist Party’s line of thought.
Speaking at a press conference on 30 January 2008 outside the Broadcasting Authority (BA)’s offices in Mile-End Road, former Labour leader Alfred Sant had described Fenech’s appointment – alongside the appointment to the newsroom of former PN anchor Keith Demicoli and former communications coordinator at the Rural Affairs Ministry Sergio Mallia – was part of a “well-thought plan to reduce PBS in a scandalous manner into a partisan tool for Government propaganda.
As a journalist at both the Independent and The Times he was well known for his “very good” contacts with the police and Fenech Adami’s personal assistant Richard Cachia Caruana. czahra@mediatoday.com.mt
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