Mess engulfs public broadcasters

11th July 2009

© pap No laughing matter. TVP boss Piotr Farfal (pictured) is sacked but future of public media hangs in the balance Share:

Poland’s public sector broadcasters have had a miserable week following a combination of firings, strikes and legal muddles.

To begin, state broadcaster TVP has been accused of misusing public money and will be forced to pay back millions to the treasury, an audit report carried out this week shows.

The report follows the dismissal last week of TVP’s right-wing boss, Piotr Farfal, who has been accused by the government of “ seriously and deliberately mismanaging the company.”

On Thursday this week, Treasury Minister Aleksander Grad said: “I have turned to the court to appoint an administrator for the company, who will maintain proper supervision and will pass indispensable i ...