BE wants to hear the government’s views in parliament on the situation at Global Media Group and the structure of Lusa

This Wednesday, BE requested an urgent hearing from the Minister of Labor on the situation of Global Media Group workers, asking to hear from the Minister of Culture on the same topic, as well as on Lusa’s shareholder structure.

Both requests were referred to the parliamentary committee on culture, youth relations and sport on Wednesday, and the party intends to consider them at a meeting on Thursday.

As for the situation at Global Media Group, blockers say that the group is “experiencing a situation of enormous instability”: employees are not being paid, contracts are not being renewed, and layoffs are being announced.

“The rights of its workers are therefore at stake, as well as the quality and survival of important Portuguese media,” warns BE.

For the blockers, hearing in parliament the Minister of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security Ana Mendes Godinho and the Office of Working Conditions about the “disrespect for the workers of the Global Media Group” is fundamental for parliament, so they demand it. these hearings are scheduled on an urgent basis.

In another request, the blockers also ask for “an urgent hearing of the Minister of Culture on the issues of Global Media Group and the shareholder structure of Lusa.”

“When the shareholders of Global Notícias Media Group, SA and Páginas Civilizada, Lda. expressed interest in selling their stakes in Lusa, the government has demonstrated its willingness to negotiate and acquire a larger position in the news agency’s shareholder structure,” the statement said. request.

According to the text, the General Directorate of Treasury and Finance presented on November 22, 2023, “a formal acquisition proposal, which included full repayment of the Global Media group’s debt to Lusa,” but in the meantime, “the Minister of Culture was informed on November 30 of the SDP’s position that any decision must be accepted by the next government,” which dictated that the socialist executive decided that there were no longer conditions for completing this operation.

“Once again, it is important to remember that Global Media Group, following a shareholder restructuring process, is now controlled by the World Opportunity Fund, an investment fund based in the Bahamas, whose capital is unknown,” he also states.

BE said the fund’s presence through Global Media Group in Lusa’s shareholding structure was “raising serious concern”.

“For all these reasons, the government’s failure to increase its stake in Lusa is deeply troubling. It is equally important to create a situation of greater transparency regarding the ownership of the Global Media Group, which owns important Portuguese media,” they justify.

The PCP also announced this Wednesday that it will request urgent hearings with the ministers of culture and labor regarding the restructuring of the Global Media Group and the state’s acquisition of a stake in Agência Lusa.