«My order to hold press conferences of state bodies only at Kabar agency is associated with the need to save budget funds. It is not about restricting access to information,» the Deputy Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan Altynai Omurbekova told 24.kg news agency.
According to her, Kabar is a national information center that provides services to all government agencies for free. Various insinuations that her order is intended to provide information to Kabar only do not correspond to reality.
«There is no need to think something out. The order concerns those government agencies who do not have their own press center. Those who have them, can hold press conferences there. If other mass media are ready to cooperate with us on the same conditions as Kabar, we will only be happy. It is not about any refusal of officials to attend events of other media. We are always glad to participate and give information,» stressed Altynai Omurbekova.
«As for the reports on the contradiction of my order to the Constitution and laws, we will consult with lawyers. If they say that there is a violation, we will eliminate it. But I still do not see any violations in the order. As for the expediency of Kabar work, I am not ready to comment on the issue. Transition of Kabar to self-financing is a topic for thought. We will also think about this,» the Deputy Prime Minister summed up.
Earlier, the deputy of the Parliament, Dastan Bekeshev, posted on Facebook about government spendings, which, in his opinion, were unreasonable and required consideration. The state media were among the items listed.
«About 613 million soms are spent from the budget on state-owned media: OTRK — 396 million soms, ElTR — 101 million soms, regional TV channels — 80 million soms, MIR channel — 34 million soms, Kabar — 20 million soms. Why do we need so many state-owned media? For example, not many people read the same Kabar news agency, why do we spend 20 million soms on its maintenance?» the deputy asked.
