`TVRI' needs overhaul, not just a face-lift

`TVRI' needs overhaul, not just a face-lift

Ardimas Sasdi, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta,
ardimas@thejakartapsot.com

State-owned television company TVRI is in the news again, but
this time not in a positive light.

Recent media reports say that TVRI, especially its branches in
several provinces, are facing serious financial problems, and
that some have even gone off air.

TVRI owes various agencies Rp 392 billion, including RP 7
billion owed by TVRI stations in the provinces to state
electricity company (PT PLN), which accumulated from unpaid fees
from 2000 to 2003 (Kompas, May 23).

The news comes on the heels of the government's program to
restructure the broadcaster, which has been embroiled in serious
financial problems, internal conflicts and alleged practices of
corruption and mismanagement. In the restructuring, which
followed a long bureaucratic process heavily tainted by the
vested interests of big political parties, the government changed
the status of TVRI from a perjan (a state company financially
dependent but allowed to carry ads) into a limited liability
company, which critics say contravenes Broadcasting Law No. 32 of
2002. The government also replaced members of its board of
directors and commissioners in April.

The appointment of new president director Hari Sulistyono, a
former executive of the defunct Lippostar news portal owned by
the Lippo Group, and Enny A. Hardjanto, a former executive of
Citibank, as news and programs director, a position that requires
broad experience, sparked allegations of cronyism due to their
close links to State Minister of State Enterprises Laksamana
Sukardi.

The controversy surrounding the TVRI shakeup was compounded by
the appointment of Golkar party secretary general Lt. Gen. (ret)
Budi Harsono as a commissioner. Critics said the ruling
Indonesian Democratic of Struggle, chaired by President Megawati
Soekarnoputri, and Golkar deliberately orchestrated the reshuffle
to benefit them in the 2004 elections. Television is expected to
be the main way political parties attract voters, as was the case
in the 1999 election campaign.

TVRI has been operating since its founding in 1963, which
coincided with the fourth Asian Games in Jakarta, and is still
the biggest television station in the country in terms of
coverage, thanks to its 23 stations and 395 transmitters spread
from the westernmost province of Aceh to the easternmost province
of Papua. In 2002 TVRI received a budget of Rp 150 billion, of
which Rp 70 billion was used to pay salaries and the remainder to
cover operations and maintenance costs.

The new TVRI management have not yet unveiled their plans on
the future direction of TVRI, but it must be to take concrete
steps to tackle the financial problems.

A light has risen at the end of the tunnel. State Minister of
Communications and Information Syamsul Muarif said during a
hearing with the House of Representatives on Monday that the
government would continue to support TVRI financially during the
transition period.

However, in the long run,TVRI management must finance the
operations of the company sustainably and, if possible, improve
the pay of their low-paid employees. TVRI must forget the past
and face the fact that rivalry from private television stations
throughout Indonesia is intense.

One of the key elements to winning this race is to get the
wholehearted support of its employees. It is also high time for
TVRI to review its mission, vision and adjust its planning on
human resource development (HRD) with the new goals starting from
the process of recruitment to training and promotion. The first
step to do this is to conduct a thorough organizational audit,
either done by TVRI internal team or a professional management
consulting firm.

The results of the audit is needed by TVRI management to
design a blue print, including its business strategy and HRD
policy. TVRI management must continue with the restructuring even
if the audit requires them to take bold, unpopular measures such
as downsizing the number of employees. On the other hand TVRI
employees are expected to shift their mindset, saying goodbye to
the habits of civil servant, who are notorious for low
productivity and a lack of initiative.

Article 13 Subarticle 2 of Broadcasting Law No. 32/2002, which
came into effect last December, divides the broadcasting firms
into four main categories: public broadcasting (TVRI and Radio
Indonesia {RRI}), private broadcasting, community broadcasting
and cable TV.

The law states that the source of TVRI's income as a public
broadcasting company consists of: Subscription fees from owners
of TV sets; government budget; donations from the public; ads;
and other lawful means related to broadcasting activities.

As a state institution with more than 40 years experience,
TVRI is indeed not that bad judging from the ownership of
stations, transmitters, a training center, a nature studio,
number of trained employees and its size in terms of coverage.

But the challenges faced by TVRI are also huge. First, the
company should explore all available financial resources to
become self-reliant amid the government plan to reduce subsidies.
Second, TVRI should create a working atmosphere that allows
employees to reach their full potential and be creative in order
to achieve goals crafted in the restructuring programs. A failure
to reform will cost TVRI dearly with more and more of its best
reporters, cameramen and technicians moving to private stations,
which can pay them more and provide a more challenging career.

At this juncture -- to survive and grow into a modern
organization or buckle -- the fate of TVRI largely depends on the
ongoing restructuring process, but whatever the form of
reorganization its management chooses, the overhaul must be
thorough and not just a facelift.