The President of the Government reiterated the Regional Government's availability to be a partner in the investment deemed necessary for the public radio and television service to fulfil its duties in the Azores, provided that the five conditions presented to the Government a year ago are met.

"The Government of the Azores is available to be a partner in the investment that is necessary to adequate public radio and television in the Azores to the essential conditions that will allow it to fulfil its duties," Vasco Cordeiro said, noting that this availability does not comprise the operating costs of the Regional Centre.

The President of the Government spoke after having received in audience the General Independent Council of RTP. With regard to investments - and as described in the letter sent to Minister Poiares Maduro about a year ago - this availability represents the opening of regional incentive schemes in order to support the necessary investments, as long as the five conditions are met.

The first concerns the creation of conditions to provide the Azores Regional Centre with effective administrative, financial and editorial autonomy and that it may be respected, said the President of the Government.

According to him, the second condition is that RTP S.A. should assume the final report of the working group for the study of the concept of audiovisual public service in the Azores, issued in June 2013, as the document establishing the guidelines for the action of the Azores Regional Centre as well as to ensure implementation.

The third condition is that the legitimacy be granted to the Government in order to monitor the compliance with these conditions, while the fourth concerns the preservation and maintenance of the archives of the Azores Regional Centre of RTP and RDP and the free access to past records and those that might be produced.

"Finally, the last condition concerns the direct and exclusive allocation of the amount of audiovisual fees paid by Azorean citizens to regional public radio and television service," added the President of the Government.

Vasco Cordeiro recalled that three proposals were sent to Minister Poiares Maduro about a year ago. They included the following solutions: a 100 percent public company that is also 100 percent regional; the division of share capital, 51 percent to the Region and 49 percent to RTP; and a minimalist solution providing the establishment of an organizational framework, similar to the one in force, to ensure some essential aspects in this process.
 
"As for the first two solutions, we clearly indicated that, with regard to any power on the appointment of officials, it would always be assigned to the Legislative Assembly and not to the Regional Government," said the President of the Government. According to him, the proposals presented demonstrate that what moves the Regional Government is the desire to "solve this problem and ensure the compliance with these state obligations in the Region."

After the meeting, Vasco Cordeiro stressed that the commitment of the General Independent Council to this process may indicate that we are entering a new phase, which allows us to have some expectations about the evolution of this matter.