Thailand’s Administrative Court yesterday decided not to grant TITV staff provisional protection against the Public Relations Department (PRD)’s order for the station to cease broadcasting. The court ruled there was no need for the provisional protection as there was no clear evidence the PRD’s order for the station to halt transmissions was unlawful.
TITV ceased broadcasting on 15 January after the Public Broadcasting Service Act was enforced, paving the way for the creation of the Thai Public Broadcasting Service (TPBS) under an interim five-member board. After hearing the court verdict, former TITV executives said they will today ask the interim board to clarify its policy for dealing with the 835 former TITV staff.
The deadline for job applications with the new channel is tomorrow. The new station is expected to begin broadcasting on 1 February. Thepchai Yong, the station’s acting director, said TPBS staff will be selected from both former TITV staff who applied for jobs and other applicants. However during its initial phase, TPBS will air only news programmes, he said, reports Bangkok Post.
(Source: Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union)
