'PBS has become Labour's strategic weapon' - PN

The Public Broadcasting Services's agenda is based on the the Labour Party's interests, Opposition MP Clyde Puli said.

"PBS has become a strategic weapon for the Labour Party and often chooses to censure the Nationalist Party," Puli, the PN's spokesperson for citizens' rights, told a press conference outside the PBS headquarters.

The Nationalist Party wrote two separate letters of complaint to PBS' head of news Reno Bugeja, accusing PBS of following Labour's agenda.

The first refers to yesterday's news bulletin that hadn't reported shadow minister Jason Azzopardi's press conference where he called on the police to investigate allegations against Gozo Minister Anton Refalo.

“Despite Azzopardi’s press conference being of news value and in the public interest, TVM chose to censure the PN in the interests of the Labour government,” the complaint read. “This is a serious shortcoming that shouldn’t be allowed to proceed as though it were normal.

“TVM aren’t interested in acting professionally, but in acting in a partisan manner to the detriment of its viewers and its constitutional obligations.”

The PN sent a copy of this letter to the Broadcasting Authority.

A PBS journalist at the press conference argued that the state broadcaster hadn't shown Prime Minister Joseph Muscat's speech at a Henley conference in Zurich either, as both non-reported news items were "repetitions" of news items.

However, Puli brushed this explanation off as a "gimmick".
The second incident refers to yesterday's programme of Dissett, presented by Bugeja.
The PN complained that Jason Azzopardi had to face off against both Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis and ex Labour MP Lino Debono, without having been informed of the misbalance in party representation beforehand.

“We have recently put forward several complaints to TVM about their regular and bare-faced imbalance against the Nationalist Party,” the PN said in their letter. “It is clear that this imbalance isn’t due to amateurship or genuine mistakes, but that it boils down to TVM’s strategy to repeatedly communicate the Labour Party’s messages.

“Although the state broadcaster’s obligations should be towards the truth and its viewers, TVM feels more of an obligation towards the Labour Party.”

The PBS journalist said that they had invited Anton Tabone to the debate but that the former Nationalist minister couldnt turn up. However, the PN's communications chief Matthew Bonett retorted that he hadn't been informed of Tabone's invitation.

Non-committal on secretary-general vacancy
Asked by MaltaToday whether he was interested in the post of PN secretary-general following the incumbent’s decision to stand down, Puli said he would only act in the party’s best interests.