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| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Momodou |
Posted - 06 Jan 2019 : 15:39:04
Media Advisory
How and why TRRC contracted QTV
Over the past several days the TRRC has had to manage a lot of controversy surrounding the award of a contract to QTV. One of the rumors making the rounds is that QTV was awarded the contract because Muhammed Jah has a brother working at the TRRC. Nothing is further from the truth. Muhammed Jah has no brother that we know of working at the TRRC. It is also not true that QTV is awarded the contract because Muhammed Jah and the TRRC Executive Secretary attended Fourah Bay College at the same time. Equally erroneous are suggestions that this is a deal designed to either steal or waste taxpayers’ money, or that there is some kind of bribery and corruption involved.
Contrary to these and other erroneous and wild speculations especially on social media, QTV is not granted exclusive coverage rights for the TRRC proceedings. The contract is for QTV to provide technical backup for the TRRC media team by providing the technical capacity to record, edit, and process the proceedings as necessary. The TRRC media team will supervise the process and distribute audio and video footage to all interested media houses to publish as they wish.
The primary reason for the TRRC’s seeking help with this work is that the commission does not currently have the resources to purchase and install its own video recording and processing equipment. Moreover, the award of the contract followed a rigorous and transparent bidding process, including solicitations of proposals and subsequent presentations by all interested media houses before members of the TRRC Contracts Committee and Communications Unit on December 21st, 2018 at the TRRC conference room.
At that meeting with the Contracts Committee and Communications Unit, presentations were made by every media houses that submitted a proposal. These were Impact Palace (EyeAfrica TV), QTV, Mediamatic (Paradise TV), GRTS, and State of Mic. Each of these media houses were expected to justify their individual charges and demonstrate how they meet the following requirements:
1. Their capacity to record live proceedings and other activities of the Commission without hindrance
2. Their capacity to facilitate video conferencing testimony for witnesses outside The Gambia
3. Their capacity to distort voices/images of witnesses who request anonymity
4. Their capacity to develop a mobile App for the TRRC so the public can access proceedings
After the departure of the media houses, the Contracts Committee and Communications Unit deliberated at length and decided that in terms of the TRRC’s needs, QTV and GRTS were the best qualified bidders. The balance tipped in favor of QTV largely because of the huge differences in their respective charges. QTV was asking for D150, 000 for a month’s filming irrespective of number of sittings or where the sittings are held. GRTS was asking for D30, 000 for a day’s filming, D200, 000 for a week’s filming, and D800, 000 for a month’s filming. Clearly, we cannot afford the kind of money GRTS is asking for. And so it should be obvious why we opted to go for QTV.
Let us reiterate at this point that what we did is essentially rent QTV’s equipment and personnel support to film our proceedings and facilitate their processing. Every interested media house, including QTV and GRTS, will receive footage and audio recordings of the hearings from the TRRC media team for airing and publishing as they deem fit. The TRRC owns the rights and will keep all recordings for our archives.
Meanwhile, journalists from all interested media houses - national and international - are currently being accredited to cover the proceedings. Journalists can sit in the hall and take notes but due to the potential sensitivity of some of the proceedings, only contracted partner cameras will be allowed in the hall to record the proceedings for later release to all media houses at the same time. Due to limited space capacity in the main hall, at least one large screen will be placed at the entrance to the hall so that journalists and others who may not fit inside can still watch the live proceedings.
Source: TRRC |
| 3 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Momodou |
Posted - 08 Jan 2019 : 15:10:34
Related topic: https://www.gambia.dk/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=16277
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| toubab1020 |
Posted - 08 Jan 2019 : 12:53:59
Nothing NEW in Gambia it has ALWAYS BEEN about MONEY.
This applies to EVERY strata of the population of Gambia.
Will this change when NEW GAMBIA is fully developed ? |
| Momodou |
Posted - 08 Jan 2019 : 10:05:03
How dare the TRRC blame GRTS
By Abubacarr Darboe
The Truth, Reconciliation and Reparation Commission in response to the public outcry over contracting a for-profit media company QTV over the national broadcaster did proof, gladly, that GRTS have the competence to do the job. However, what they did not mention was how they went behind our backs and acted in such manner that “the balance tipped in favor of QTV”. This they claimed was “largely because of the huge differences in their respective charges. QTV was asking for D150, 000 for a month’s filming irrespective of number of sittings or where the sittings are held. GRTS was asking for D30, 000 for a day’s filming, D200, 000 for a week’s filming, and D800, 000 for a month’s filming”. And they added “clearly, we cannot afford the kind of money GRTS is asking for”.
GRTS considers it very patronizing for the TRRC to use such flimsy but cynical financial excuses as a bait to obfuscate its unfortified gaffe of deliberately denying the public broadcaster its rightful position. It is a pity that some people also bought into this excuse; unfortunately they never bother to ask why is GRTS covering the Janneh Commission and the CRC for free.
I am just tempted to ask when does finance become an issue in GRTS coverages for national events? Lest you forgot, during the formative stages of the TRRC, GRTS was the only TV station that went countrywide from region to region, together with the print media, to cover the sensitizations leading to the mandate of the TRRC. The national broadcaster did not charge a penny, for we know it was our mandate to cover. Besides, there was no money at that time, because had there been some funding, GRTS will be dealt the same blow.
Should we clarify to the public, GRTS held several meetings with the Attorney General and team, and the TRRC on modalities for the recording and broadcast of proceedings of the Commission. It was agreed at that time that GRTS should create a special media portal which will allow all other media operators to access vital information and recordings of the proceedings of the TRRC in an unrestricting fashion. We are strongly convinced that more than anyone, we have the capacity, competence, country-wide reach as well as ability to not only cover and relay the proceedings of the commission, but professionally translate the contents of all proceedings in all local languages across our respective medium (TV, Radio and Online).
It came as a shock therefore to learn that the TRRC has contracted QTV, a private entity with a pure profit mandate with no edge over GRTS, to lead such an important national undertaking. The budget we presented to them recently is hewed from the computations made earlier, where it was agreed that GRTS will be in charge of securing relevant airtime from other private radio, TV and community radio stations to relay the proceedings of the TRRC. As opposed what the TRRC is saying, this budget was comprehensive and meant for the following:
(1) Comprehensively record in HD with high quality audio the live hearings of the Commission using multi-camera system with a minimum of three cameras
(2) Mask footage and distort audio on the fly when necessary.
(3) Provide time delay for live materials so as to allow management of information.
(4) Provide multiple live feeds with the TRRC logo at all times to TVs and Radios for broadcast.
(5) Stream live the hearings on TRRC website and social media including Facebook and YouTube.
That is why it does not make sense to us for an established media house to fulfill all these conditionalities with at least 3 cameras on a daily basis for one month for only 150, 000. That would imply charging D5000 per day, even when going to the provinces. The TRRC also justifying their actions claimed that what they did was essentially rent QTV’s equipment and personnel support to film their proceedings and facilitate their processes. But what we see unfortunately is that QTV was doing a live broadcast of the proceedings both on Radio and TV, contrary to what the TRRC stated. All these goes to show that the TRRC have not really spoken yet.
Finally, for those arguing that GRTS is funded by Tax payer’s money and therefore must cover the TRRC for free, what they fail to understand is that GRTS does not receive any subvention from government. The revenue we receive as GSM levy is what we use as operational cost to service our liabilities with other institutions like NAWEC, GAMTEL, Social Security, etc. GRTS has tariffs for various Paid-for-Programs and if the TRRC invite us to submit our charges, you think we shouldn’t? After all, is there anything wrong with the TRRC engaging us on our tariffs for negotiations, in the nation’s interest? Nay, but since the availability of funding for the TRRC, the commission overlooked GRTS and never engaged us on any form of discussions whatsoever on covering the hearings. What we received instead was a letter on the Friday the 21st of December after working hours, requesting for a proposal, in both soft and hard copies, as well as do a presentation by Monday the 24th December, at 13:00 GMT, failure of which they will forfeit the opportunity. All this was meant to kick us out, as can be understood now. GRTS once again considers the actions of the TRRC as grossly inappropriate and recommends an immediate and unreserved correction of this unfortunate anomaly as soon as possible. |
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