The following is a statement issued by Editor Emeritus and chairman of the Nation Publishing Company Limited, Harold Hoyte, in response to public reports related to the composition of the company’s board of directors.
IN MARCH OF this year, the board of directors of One Caribbean Media (OCM), of which I am a member, decided to effect changes to the operational structure of its subsidiary boards in the entire region and refresh their memberships to make them more responsive to the needs of 21st century media.
As a consequence, some board appointments were terminated. Changes to board directorships are standard corporate practice, particularly where significant additional business priorities can benefit from fresh perspectives and skill sets.
The board of OCM has been giving thorough consideration to the legal and administrative challenges involved in aspects of the proposed transformed structures of its two major subsidiaries in Barbados, the Nation Publishing Company and Starcom Network.
We are about to roll out those details, which is part of succession planning at the corporate level and ensuring independent direction and objectivity in governance practices.
The variations will acknowledge the changing dynamics of the media, while creating opportunities for senior management to garner experience at the corporate level in two well-known and respected news organisations in Barbados.
The process is ongoing. I expect that the changes will be in place by the end of May.
In addition, we anticipate that after studying the results of several focus groups, an announcement will also be made about our pledge to vastly improve both the content and look of all editions, starting with the flagship publication, the SUNDAY SUN.
The directors of OCM and the management of the Nation and Starcom remain committed to giving Barbadians the advantage of reading and listening to their choice newspapers and radio stations, whose editorial independence was enshrined in the merger agreement that established OCM.
Barbadians can be assured that the merger which took place on January 1, 2006, between media houses in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago, and which resulted in the creation of One Caribbean Media, remains a joint operation with currently four directors drawn from each of the two countries.
I think it would be timely for us to be reminded that over 700 Barbadians are shareholders in One Caribbean Media that encompasses businesses and assets in Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada and St Lucia.
Of all the recent mergers and acquisitions involving Barbadian and Trinidadian companies, ours has uniquely afforded Barbadians the opportunity to have a stake in a successful indigenous enterprise outside of Barbados, and in particular the economy of Trinidad and Tobago.
This Nation experience resulted in 39 per cent of OCM being owned by our nationals. In addition, the largest individual shareholders are Barbadian. The suggestion that is often spread abroad that the Nation Group was sold to Trinidad interests is patently false and is merely an attempt to create mischief and hysteria among the uninformed.
Our founders remain confident that the initiative to merge has worked to our mutual advantage and has reinforced the value of growing together as one Caribbean people.