Ramroop’s Learning Channel contract will not be renewed

 NCN will fill the gap– Govt.  

By Abena Rockcliffe The benefits that some have been able to reap from possible insider trading will soon come to an end. Instead of paying Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop $3.6M per month to facilitate the Guyana Learning Channel, the government has decided to make the necessary investment to establish a satellite uplink facility.

Bobby Ramroop

The Learning Channel is intended to reach all communities in Guyana by way of satellite. But, apparently that is not what is happening. One of the reasons given by Education Minister, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine, for not renewing the contract, is the need for wider reach. The Learning Channel is transmitted by TVG at a monthly cost of $3.6M. TVG is owned by Dr. ‘Bobby’ Ramroop – former President Bharrat Jagdeo’s best friend. The Learning Channel initiative came into being four years ago, during the tenure of then President Bharrat Jagdeo. Even though it was lauded as a good initiative, many criticized the fact that Dr. Ramroop was the sole financial beneficiary. Last evening, Minister of Education, Dr. Rupert Roopnarine, indicated that Dr. Ramroop’s contract comes to an end in December and his government has no intention of renewing it. Dr. Roopnarine said that the matter has already attracted the attention of Cabinet. The Minister noted that it was at the level of Cabinet that “strong recommendations” were made to discontinue the relationship with Ramroop and move towards self- sufficiency. When Ramroop was given the contract, his television station was the only one in the country with the capacity to facilitate the Learning Channel. Therefore, the previous government, to which he had close ties, placed the hefty contract in his hands. Politicians, who were sitting on the opposition side at that time, had opined that Ramroop benefitted from insider trading. A Partnership for National Unity’s (APNU) Joseph Harmon had said that Guyana needs to move its legislation forward to prosecute those who use privileged information for the unjust enrichment of their friends.

Minister of Education, Rupert Roopnarine

He had said that the granting of the contract by Jagdeo to his best friend is a clear indication that Ramroop was privy to Government’s plan to establish the Learning Channel and as such made the necessary investments in the relevant technologies to air it via satellite. Harmon had pointed out that this is called insider trading and it is a criminal act in most developed countries. Either way it was put, the fact was that only TVG could have facilitated the Learning Channel, but that will be no more. Dr. Roopnaraine said that his government will make all necessary arrangements for the National Communications Network (NCN) to host the Learning Channel. He said that the PPP’s reasoning for giving Ramroop such a contract is not holding well with the new administration. “I am sure that whatever system Mr. Ramroop was able to take advantage of, we will also be able to take advantage of. So I do not see this absence of technology as an obstacle; whatever mechanism or technology is required to ensure that the Learning Channel reaches where we want it to reach will be utilized.” The Minister noted that the Learning Channel is not being accessed all over the country as it was intended to. He added that NCN is already able to reach all across Guyana so he can see no problem, with NCN being able to fulfill this mandate once the other facilities are put in place. Dr. Roopnaraine had previously indicated that he would have reviewed the contract for the Learning Channel. He said that the Ministry would have been looking at the contract with an aim to cut long term cost. Dr. Roopnaraine added that his administration will prefer to have the Learning Channel function in such a way that it can be deemed a government asset as opposed to a rented facility. When Dr. Ramroop was given the contract, the then opposition—APNU and the Alliance For Change (AFC), the parties now in government—had lauded the Learning Channel as a good initiative, but had labeled the deal behind it as “sour”. The AFC criticized the arrangement for the project. AFC leader, Khemraj Ramjattan had likened the contracting of TVG to air the Learning Channel for $3.6M monthly, to the Sanata Complex deal authorized by Jagdeo. He said that though separate deals, their similarities appear to be a mirror reflection. The primary beneficiary of these two deals is Dr. Ramroop. And, in both instances, the deals were specifically designed to suit Ramroop, said Ramjattan. Ramjattan said that it was a move by Jagdeo to further enrich his close friend. According to the AFC leader, contracting TVG for this multi-million-dollar project is a perfect example of how the “favoured ones” benefitted under the then PPP/C Government. He said that the PPP/C should have invested in the necessary technologies for the Learning Channel instead of contracting a ‘privately owned’ television station. This is actually what is now being done.