PBS refuses to divulge cost of Creativity Hub

The Public Broadcasting Services refused to disclose the cost of the Creativity Hub inaugurated by former prime minister Lawrence Gonzi in December, a project which is thought to have cost Maltese taxpayers millions.

Answering MaltaToday's questions about the cost of the project, PBS CEO Anton Attard said, "The information is confidential."

The PBS chief explained that the project was funded by PBS together with a bank, however Attard did not go into the details respecting what kind of loan agreement was reached and how much PBS forked out.

In December 2012, days before the electoral campaign kicked off, the building was inaugurated with all the customary fanfare, however then-PM Gonzi did not say how much the project cost.

The Home Affairs ministry led by Manuel Mallia, under whose remit PBS falls, referred MaltaToday's questions to Attard, however a ministry spokesperson confirmed the confidentiality.

The secrecy surrounding the cost of the project, which presumably was well over €1 million, bears a stark resemblance to the previous government's silence on state-owned companies or government agencies.

Former finance minister Tonio Fenech was regularly scorned by the Labour opposition for dodging questions on Air Malta and other entities by saying that the information was commercially confidential.

Last year, former MP and Labour's current CEO, Gino Cauchi, asked the National Audit Office to investigate alleged claims of lack of transparency and accountability at PBS.

Cauchi said that following replies to parliamentary questions, it transpired that there was a discrepancy of €1.6 million relative to the approved expenditure estimate for 2010's public service obligation.

Anton Attard, who formerly headed Net, the PN's television station, was harshly criticised by Labour folowing his appointment at PBS in 2010. The new Labour government has kept him on board, however, notwithstanding the wholesale changes at PBS carried out in the aftermath of the general election.

Despite the PN administration's boasts that the Creativity Hub represented a leap forward in the services offered by PBS and that it would cater to independent media producers, the building is not being utilized, with the exception of the CEO's office and the finance and sales department.

Sources close to PBS have informed MaltaToday that despite the heavy investment, the building is not being utilised at all, fomenting further discontent at the way the company is being managed among its employees.

Speaking to MaltaToday, Attard said that the building would house all PBS Radio and TV operations.

"The building is expected to be fully operational by October 2013, when all activities present at TV House will have been transferred."

Reportedly all PBS employees have had their overtime removed, in a move which could be a result of the company's financial situation. Yet, when the national station needs additional crews it hires freelancers from other television stations or media houses.

Sources told MaltaToday that PBS workers were also disappointed because crews from private media houses, including Where's Everybody are being employed for specific events such as the Eurovision Song Contest final in Sweden.

Attard confirmed with Malta Today that the Maltese delegation in Malmo, Sweden, was composed of 16 people, of which only three were employed by PBS.

Attard said that the delegation included "six band members, the composer and author and delegation officials."

He added that 14 members of the delegation stayed in Sweden for 12 days, while the other members stayed for three or four days.

Asked how much the event cost PBS, Attard said, "The trip is financed commercially and is not funded by the government.