ERT To Be Renamed NERIT & To Relaunch End Of August

ERT logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said on Wednesday that the government is finally eliminating a hotbed of opacity and waste, and protecting public interest, by deciding to close down ERT. The Prime Minister is right.

The broadcaster (and its television and radio network) was abruptly pulled off air late on Tuesday night and its nearly 2,700 staff suspended as part of the conservative-led coalition government’s deeply unpopular austerity drive. The shutdown followed months of work stoppages by ERT employees angry at plans to restructure the broadcaster.

     “You can’t fix a car while it is running, you have to take it off the road,” government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou told journalists.
     “It is a temporary postponement…. Everything will pass by parliament, I assure you it’s all legal,” he said, promising a “restart” during the summer.

The government plan regarding the development of a new national broadcaster replacing ERT was made public on Wednesday. The bill, which was posted on the website of the government's general secretariat for communications, noted that ERT would be renamed NERIT SA, which stands for New Hellenic Radio Internet and Television.

The new legal entity is defined as a state company owned by the public sector and regulated by the state.

According to the bill, revenues are going to continue to stem from levies collected through electricity bills, though the amount was not specified. While the bill did not set a date for the launch of the new national broadcaster government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou said on Tuesday that the re-launch would take place by the end of August.

Meanwhile, the European Commission announced that it has taken note of the decision by the Greek authorities to close down ERT but clarified that it was a decision taken in full autonomy. The Commission made it clear that it did not seek the closure of ERT, but it doesn't question the Greek government’s mandate to manage the public sector. In an announcement the Commission said that the decision of the Greek government should rather be viwed in the context of the major and necessary efforts that are being taken to modernise the Greek economy. Those include improving its efficiency and effectiveness of the public sector.

The Commission understands the difficult situation of ERT staff and expects the announced dismissals to be carried out in full accordance with the applicable legal framework.

The announcement added that the Commission welcomes the commitment of the Greek government to launch a media actor that fulfils the important role of public broadcasting and is financially sustainable.

The ERT employees, stunned by the sudden loss of their jobs, who were finally fired from the very corrupt state TV and radio network are actually still at ERT's headquarters and are refusing to leave. They are currently broadcasting a live new marathon which is being streamed online with the aim of rallying support from both Greek citizens and forces from abroad.

To support them, Greek unions plan a 24-hour general strike Thursday and from what we learn everything will be shut down.

Media observers acknowledge that ERT has a long history of mismanagement and political meddling, but say the Samaras administration is not free of blame.