Global Media Group has accumulated debts to the state of 7.5 million euros

The executive committee of Global Media Group (GMG) said on Tuesday that the group owes €7.5 million in debts to Social Security and the Inland Revenue, for which previous administrations were “fully responsible”.

In a note published on Tuesday in a newsletter to which Lusa had access, the Executive Committee, led by Joao Paulo Fafe, laid out the group’s financial scenario, blaming previous administrations.

“Today, GMG’s debt to the Tax and Social Security Office amounts to approximately 7 million 500 thousand euros, and this debt is repaid monthly through a payment plan under the RERT (Exceptional Regularization Tax Regime),” he assured, emphasizing that “the total amount is responsible for the existence of the debt lies with the previous administrations which were “inherited” by the present Executive Committee.”

According to the current management, “the value of the debt to GMG suppliers is around five million euros and in this regard it is important to highlight that there are several cases, some of which have already been identified, that even the previous administration asked for. at the beginning of 2023, which will issue an invoice only after the conclusion of the transaction with WOF [World Opportunity Fund]”.

The Executive Committee therefore estimates that GMG will end 2023 with losses of approximately seven million euros.

Management rejected the offer, although the fund did not invest in Global Media. “This is a complete lie, and only through ignorance or bad faith can such a lie be asserted,” he assured, pointing out that “from June to the present, WOF has already invested about 10.2 million euros in GMG.”

According to the executive committee, GMG’s income is not enough to cover expenses. “Revenues, mainly from newsagent sales, subscriptions and commercial activities, were mainly used to cover the tax deductions and taxes of some suppliers necessary to maintain the activities of the group and its brands,” he assured.

The management also stated that “contrary to what was broadcast, according to the distributor VASP, Jornal de Notícias sells an average of 14,385 copies on newsstands, and from Monday to Saturday sales average only 12,460 copies.”

Citing the same source, the management also reported that “in the last year, sales of Jornal de Notícias newsstands have fallen by approximately 12.8%, corresponding to approximately 2 thousand 200 copies per day,” assuring that “relative to the number of journalists in Jornal de Notícias, its editorial team consists of more than 90 journalists, and another 70 people are part of its staff,” he assured.

Finally, the Executive Committee stated regarding the Social Communications Regulatory Authority (ERC) that “to date, WOF has provided all clarifications requested.”

“However, we cannot stress enough that the scrutiny the fund has been subjected to in recent months, compared to other similar situations that have arisen in the sector, is at least unprecedented, if not even unusual,” he said.

Last week, GMG shareholders Marco Galinha, Kevin Ho, José Pedro Soeiro and Mendes Ferreira said it was World Opportunity Fund’s “blatant non-compliance” with its obligations that prevented workers from being paid.

The executive committee, in turn, stated that “despite the difficult financial situation in which the group finds itself, the remaining shareholders have already twice categorically refused to make any financial contribution to the group.”

Workers at GMG, which owns Jornal de Notícias, Diário de Notícias, TSF and O Jogo, went on strike on January 10 to protest, among other things, delays in the payment of wages.