The decision of the Supervisory Board of the PJSC “National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine” (NPBCU) dated January 31, 2019, on early termination of the contract with the Management Board Chairman of the PJSC “NPBCU” Mr.Zurab Alasania has shaken the society and has become an institutional challenge to the independent broadcasting in Ukraine.
As the Supervisory Board and the Management Board represent the main units of the organizational structure of the NPBCU, their conflict undermines the credibility of the institute of public broadcasting in general and may have far-reaching implications that cast doubt over many years of efforts of politicians, the public and journalists to establish public broadcasting in Ukraine as a fundamental institution in the modern democratic world.
The issue of dismissal of the Management Board Chairman was considered in such a way, that made many experts, including the Supervisory Board members, call in question the dismissal procedure’s compliance with the current legal provisions. In particular, this concerns the procedure of adding a question on the Board Chairman dismissal to the agenda, announcing this issue closed, the wording of the draft decision, lack of time to review critical materials, failure to provide the Board Chairman with the opportunity to defend his position, and failure to conduct proper debates of the Supervisory Board members.
Due to the hastiness and lack of transparency in decision-making, we can hardly expect that the decisions made will be recognized by the general public as legitimate, even in spite of the post factum publicizing of the relevant minutes of the Supervisory Board.
We do not question the right of the Supervisory Board to act within the limits of their powers, including pre-term termination of the contract with the Board Chairman. However, we would like to emphasize that such a tool in the hands of the Supervisory Board is a last resort that should not be used hastily, in a closed fashion, without public discussion and without making sure the other party to the conflict exercised their right to reasoned defense.
We believe the right way to resolve the crisis lies in an open, public procedure and fair competition of ideas. We call upon the Supervisory Board and the Board to support the proposal to hold an open meeting of the Supervisory Board, during which the parties to the conflict can publicly express their ideas, and then add the appropriately worded question to the meeting agenda for the repeat vote.
The decision made in a transparent way, regardless of its substance, can restore the public trust and reestablish constructive cooperation between the management bodies of the NPBCU.
We stand ready to continue making our contribution to the process of strengthening public broadcasting in Ukraine.
Olexandr Sushko,
Executive Director
Olga Ayvazovska,
Board Chairman
