Dear Prime Minister Mottley,
I write in support of the concerns recently raised regarding the current state of the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and its alarming decline due to financial mismanagement, lack of visionary leadership, and an abuse of public funds, it is now facing a crisis that threatens its sustainability and credibility. Throughout its existence, information has always been “leaked” from the financial Department of CBC, not because officers want to hang CBC’s dirty linen in public, but because it is disturbing having to handle and authorise evidence of injustice and misplaced priorities supported by the minister, the Board and CEO. Officers will prepare for the victimisation to follow, but union representation is available.
The recent exposé, The Sad State of CBC at 60, has highlighted the following troubling issues:
1. Financial Mismanagement and Employee Welfare: CBC employees are not being able to enter any lending agreement with financial institutions, because of the publicised uncertainty of the Corporation. We cannot buy land, we cannot but any of the houses from the HOPE project, we cannot buy a car.
2. Lack of Leadership and Vision: It is deeply concerning that CBC, an institution built on communication, is suffering from a total absence of internal engagement. The failure to convene board meetings, management meetings, and staff meetings suggests a leadership structure that lacks both transparency and accountability.
3. Vindictive Leadership and Misplaced Priorities: The ill treatment and disrespect of junior staff members because they do not share your views. The decision to dismiss promising young talent, particularly at a time when CBC desperately needs innovation and fresh perspectives. The decision to push and elevate based on personal friendship although the lady is incompetent and out of her depth is pitiful. The resignation of six news anchors in less than 18 months, and other staff members and freelancers is cause for concern.
4. Dubious Employment Practices: The employment of a lady within the Christ Church East constituency while being compensated through CBC’s payroll. A gross misuse of state resources and an unacceptable breach of ethical governance. The submitted invoices present dates and time when the individual was working not at CBC, but with/for the MP (kindly request the invoices that clearly detail dates and times, find out who at the CBC approves and signs these invoices for work done in the constituency of Christ Church East, while being fully aware that the lady is not working for CBC). Such actions raise serious ethical and fiduciary concerns. It is in your interest to find out if the same lady is not being paid by the National Council on Substance Abuse also. Ask for the records from NCSA. You may wish to find out the other establishment where she is “employed.”
While other news reporters are heard nightly presenting two or three reports because they are assigned work, there is one who chooses the stories she wants to work on. She is assigned a photographer, who submits his invoices to CBC. She is assigned an internal video editor, and a script writer in the newsroom, yet is paid above and beyond what is paid to the work horse reporters who perform the donkey work daily and cannot object to requests from their supervisor. Give thought to an investigation into the personal relationships, and how these are contributing to the financial decline at CBC.
5.Workplace Disparities: While other departments are forced to work for weeks without air conditioning and endure challenging environmental conditions due to a so-called “lack of funds,” any issue suspected in the Finance Department is met with an immediate shutdown. Professional cleaners and environmental specialists are swiftly called in to conduct assessments, highlighting a clear disparity in treatment. This blatant disregard for other departments must come to an end. It’s astonishing how funds can always be found to ensure that some are comfortable, while others—like those in the newsroom, who generate revenue—are consistently overlooked.
In the light of these disturbing revelations, I strongly urge you, Prime Minister, to launch an immediate and thorough investigation into the affairs of CBC. This investigation should include:
- A forensic audit of CBC’s finances to determine the extent of mismanagement and improper allocations, including that which is given to two ladies, closely connected to the Minister.
- An inquiry into the employment practices within CBC, particularly the misuse of funds to pay an individual working within the Minister’s constituency. Could such an individual continue to sit in the cabinet of Barbados?
- A review of CBC’s leadership structure to assess its effectiveness and the necessity of reform.
One final caution, be careful what you accept as the way forward for CBC from novices. CBC is too important an institution to be allowed to collapse because of negligence and poor leadership. As we work toward a modern and progressive republic, we must ensure that it is managed with integrity, transparency, and accountability.
I trust in your commitment to good governance and hope that you will take swift action to address these pressing concerns.
Yours sincerely,
Concerned Citizen of Barbados
The blogmaster invites you to join the discussion.