A new public television broadcasting service of Greece – NERIT – may go on air by end of April, said Pantelis Kapsis, the Deputy Minister of Public Radio and Television speaking on Athens radio station Vima FM this week.
Mr Kapsis admitted that there were serious delays in the payment of compensation of all the ERT employees, with about half of what is owed having been paid out. The Minister then noted that it was the Ministry of Finances’ responsibility to determine how compensation would be estimated and as such, it would also decide on the rest of the payments.
Responding to a question about the serious blunder of publishing a list of NERIT staff recruitments on the official website of the company without this list being officially approved (the list was subsequently withdrawn), Mr. Kapsis vaguely said that “some people got inside and took the data”, while he also went on to claim that the leak came from the public sector, rather than the private firm tasked with composing the lists. Mr. Kapsis took the opportunity to explain that the list is to be revised since approximately 30 per cent of the NERIT applicants had not submitted the relevant supportive documentation and certificates.
When asked about his plans after he has completed his work with public radio and television, Mr Kapsis, a former government spokesperson under the PrimeMinistership of Lucas Papademos, revealed that he was considering running in the upcoming May elections for European Parliament. The Deputy Minister however noted that he was concerned about the developments in the center left and PASOK’s future.
Source: tovima
