Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister, Nicholas Morris, has accused the former PNM administration of deliberately weakening state broadcaster TTT Limited, saying Government decisions had placed the station in financial difficulty and reduced its viewership.
Contributing to the Budget debate on Friday, Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister, Nicholas Morris, said TTT remained a national institution that had served generations of Trinidadians and Tobagonians, but noted that decisions taken under the previous administration undermined the company’s ability to compete.
Minister Morris said TTT’s problems were not the result of management, but of policies that restricted the station to local programming, while investment in equipment declined.
“They almost caused TTT to become Petrotrin 2.0. TTT is a gem in this country. For years we have grown up looking at Mastana Bahar, 12 and Under, Scouting for Talent. TTT has crossed generations. But do you know, Mr. Speaker, TTT is in a financial position today not because of poor management by this Government. I was shocked Mr Speaker when one day I asked the TTT Management why they were not showing World Cup scores. They said Minister, TTT doesn’t show any international shows or Sports.”
He said he was told TTT had been directed to focus solely on local content, a move he said negatively affected audience numbers.
“A decision was made for TTT to only show local, yes local. And I asked myself, why would TTT only show local stuff? You know why? Because if you don’t invest in equipment for TTT, its production will go down. And then if you take out the international show on TTT, its viewership goes down. But what happens is there might be stations owned by friends and financiers will benefit. Today I pose the question, were you stifling TTT to ensure other stations owned by friends and financiers were benefiting? I put that question to you.”