Mizzi insists Gharghur tower could not support further TV broadcasts

Labour MP Joe Mizzi insisted in parliament yesterday that no political discrimination was committed against the Nationalist Party when it was not allowed to carry out television transmissions from the Gharghur master antenna in 1998.

He said in an adjournment speech that studies made under the previous PN government and the Labour government had shown that the antenna could not support further transmissions.

The Labour government upon its election in 1996 had found that although applications had been made to the Broadcasting Authority for the granting of television licences, such licences could not be granted because of the Gharghur antenna problem. The Planning Authority had objected to a proposal for the setting up of a farm of antennae as a way to solve this problem.

The PN had initially decided it did not need a television station but then it suddenly had a change of heart and opposition leader Eddie Fenech Adami in a letter to then Prime Minister Alfred Sant in December 1996 asked him to assign television channels to the Broadcasting Authority so that they could then be assigned to television stations. In that letter Dr Fenech Adami himself had said that since it was known that the Gharghur antenna could not support anymore television broadcasts, he was requesting publication of a legal notice in terms of the Broadcasting Act so that such transmission could be made from another locality.

Mr Mizzi said Dr Sant, and himself as minister responsible for communications, had met the chairman of the Broadcasting Authority, Prof. Pirotta in July 1997 and the prime minister subsequently assigned a number of TV channels to the authority on condition that broadcasts were not made from Gharghur since that was not technically possible.

In February 1998 Prof Pirotta wrote to Dr Sant telling him that the PN had been granted a licence for test transmissions and the party had identified a site at Iklin for its own broadcasting antenna. He therefore asked Dr Sant to publish the legal notice so that broadcasts from sites other than Gharghur could be authorised.

Mr Mizzi said he was instructed by Dr Sant to issue the relevant legal notice.

The TV broadcasting licence was then issued to the Nationalist Party on condition that the broadcasts were not made from Gharghur.

Mr Mizzi said the licence issued to the PN clearly stipulated that no broadcasts could be made from Gharghur.

He said that when a television station, which was not the PN's, carried out test transmissions from Gharghur in violation of its licence, prompt action was also taken against it by the police and the Wireless Telegraphy Department.

Mr Mizzi said the recent court sentence about the Gharghur antenna had not declared him or Dr Sant guilty of political discrimination. He was of the view, however, that this case was orchestrated by the Nationalist Party so that it could be given funds through the courts. Indeed he was never asked to give evidence and the court was never told the information he was giving now.

Mr Mizzi said more remained to be said about abuses by an employee of the Wireless Telegraphy Department, a Mr Griscti, who was close to the Nationalist Party and had even made arrangements for a former broadcasting tower of Deutche Welle to be acquired by the PN. The tower was dismantled quickly and not according to prior arrangements, so that the PN could be accommodated.

On the day of the Gharghur case Mr Griscti had made arrangements with Prof. Pirotta so that on the day the PN was to attempt test transmissions from Gharghur, Prof Pirotta was away from Malta and no other member of the board of the Broadcasting Authority was available.