A new Broadcasting Authority without political appointments

The ugly impasse at the Broadcasting Authority was solved earlier this week, at least partially, when the embattled chairperson, Tanya Borg Cardona, handed in her resignation. She had been resisting calls by the workers, represented by the UHM, to step down amid claims of bullying. Ms Borg Cardona was also accused of running the authority like it was her personal fiefdom and the employees say she does not have a clue about what the law on broadcasting says. Then there is the whole fiasco about the new Valletta premises, which the employees say is inadequate for the authority’s needs.

Tanya Borg Cardona did the right thing, in the end, but she should have resigned much earlier, when it had become clear that she had lost the trust of the BA employees and also of some of the board members. She could have thus spared the authority from being dragged into the mud. She had no choice but to go. Even in a hypothetical situation where she was the only one telling the truth and the workers were lying, she would have had no choice to resign, for her every step would have been undermined.

One can safely say that the root of the problem was the nature of Ms Borg Cardona’s appointment – the political kind. The former chairperson was appointed to the BA by PM Joseph Muscat, as a person of trust. The head of the Broadcasting Authority should never be a political appointment, for someone who is handpicked by the Prime Minister can never be seen as impartial. And we are speaking here about the authority that is tasked with ensuring that the national broadcaster is not skewed in favour of one party or the other. This task is always of paramount importance, let alone when a general election is just round the corner.

The Opposition is suggesting that the new BA chairperson should be approved by a two thirds Parliamentary majority, so as to enjoy the trust of both sides of the house. The government should take up the suggestion and immediately set out to find a good successor for Ms Borg Cardona.

The next chairperson has to have the necessary credentials – preferably a background in the media and broadcasting. It cannot be someone who goes to political events, or someone who has appeared on an electoral campaign billboard. It should not be a relative of some minister, or a personal friend of the PM.

Following revelations by our sister newspaper The Malta Independent on Sunday that at least 80 people out of 300 were found to have more than one ID Card number, the Nationalist Party has again accused government of playing with democracy. The government has, naturally, dismissed these claims. If we are expected to believe that democracy is not under threat, than the government should make sure that broadcasting in Malta is truly impartial, and this can only be achieved if it does not resort to another political appointment at the top level of the Broadcasting Authority.

In the meantime, even the Nationalist party can do more to assure that the Broadcasting Authority plays an impartial role. As part of its good governance initiatives it can propose the abolition of party representatives on the Broadcasting Authority board. Such a move, if agreed with government could really spell out a new beginning for the authority with members on its board that need to be approved by two thirds of the House.