Shadick exposes misleading info on Radio license approval

[www.inewsguyana.com] – The efforts by a daily newspaper to misrepresent the granting of radio licenses by the National Broadcasting Authority (NBA) are now directed against one of the operators – Telecor Cultural Broadcasting Inc.

The particular daily newspaper has been publishing misleading stories regarding the granting of the radio license to Telecor as part of its wider campaign of misinforming the public about the allocation of the radio license process.

Chairperson of the NBA Bibi Shadick, who is a practicing Lawyer, rejected the falsehood being peddled by the newspaper. She pointed out that the company was qualified for the license in accordance with the Broadcasting Act.

Based on Shadick’s comments and information supplied by the Telecor Company Secretary/Director Dharamchand Depoo, iNews was advised of the following facts:

–         No radio license was granted to any company by the name of “Telcor Cultural Broadcasting Inc

– An application was made for Radio license since 1997 by Depoo, who then transferred his interest to Telecor. This was one of the first applications for radio license in Guyana

– Telecor was incorporated as a Guyanese company several years (2009) prior to the granting of the license

– The company was always compliant with the Company’s Act of Guyana and was never in default or struck off

– The company is wholly Guyanese owned; all of its Directors are Guyanese with four of the five residing in Guyana. This means that 80 percent of the directors who would have voting rights for the company would be resident Guyanese. The law only requires 51 percent.

– While the original shareholder lives in the US having been an American citizen, she was a Guyanese and “never stopped being one”.

Attempts by the daily newspaper and a few others to challenge the decision in Court have not been successful given that there were no legal or procedural errors in the granting of radio licenses to 11 operators with Telecor being just one.

Depoo pointed out that his company does not expect a cessation of the newspaper’s campaign of misleading the public due to its intention of pursuing a political agenda on the matter.

Depoo pointed out that his company has refused to engage the newspaper in its mischievous agenda as it would only lend credibility to the rumors and misinformation being peddled.

The other companies which were granted radio licenses include National Communications Network (NCN/Government), Radio Guyana Inc (Dr Ranjisinghi Ramroop), NTN Radio (Anand Persaud), New Guyana Company Ltd (Dharam Kumar Seeraj), Wireless Connections (Maxwell Thom), Hits and Jams Entertainment (Rawle Fergusson), Alfro Alphonso and Sons Enterprise (Alfro Alphonso), Haslyn Graham (of Linden), Little Rock Television Station (Rocliffe Christie), and Rudy Grant, the younger brother of international singer Eddy Grant.