Communications minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams has been accused by the DA of deliberately misleading parliament about the SABC’s request for a government guarantee.
The opposition party claimed on Monday that Ndabeni-Abrahams deliberately withheld from MPs that finance minister Tito Mboweni, in a letter dated June 25, had declined to provide a guarantee to the beleaguered public broadcaster.
In the letter, Mboweni does not accede to the SABC request for R3.2bn government guarantee stating: “I draw your attention to the fiscal constraints which does not allow for the ongoing bailout of entities that should in effect be commercially sustainable if operated in an effective manner.”
The opposition party also slammed Mboweni for failing to “understand the constitutional role of the SABC”.
Ndabeni-Abrahams briefed parliament’s communications portfolio committee last week during which she raised doubt about the SABC’s turnaround strategy. She suggested that it would not be prudent to grant the SABC a government guarantee without a sound plan to turn around the organisation.
The public broadcaster, the main source of news and commentary for most South Africans, is on the verge of collapse and has warned that it could be forced to go off the air at any time, unless the government comes to the rescue soon. It has requested the R3.2bn government guarantee to stay afloat. The broadcaster has massive debt of almost R2bn, an enormous infrastructure maintenance backlog, and a huge and untenable wage bill.
On Monday, DA MP and communications spokesperson Phumzile Van Damme revealed the letter which Mboweni sent to Ndabeni-Abrahams on June 25.
“Ndabeni-Abrahams appeared before the portfolio committee on communications on July 3 2019 and made no mention of the letter, which contained crucial information that not only the public, but parliament, the body to which she is accountable, ought to have been apprised of,” said Van Damme.
She said the contents of the letter itself are quite problematic and reveal that Mboweni does not understand the mandate of the communications department in relation to the SABC.
Mboweni stated in the letter: “I want to emphasise the very important role and responsibility that the department of communications has to play in the turnaround of the SABC. The SABC is ultimately only an implementing agent for the department of communications.”
Van Damme highlighted that the Broadcasting Act, and as confirmed by the high court makes the SABC’s independence clear
“The SABC is not an implementing agent for the department of communications as stated by Mboweni. It is flabbergasting that he does not know this. We call on minister Mboweni to properly apprise himself on the role and mandate of the SABC, and once having done so, continue negotiations regarding funding for the SABC with this knowledge in mind.
“The current SABC management and board cannot be blamed for the financial crisis the SABC finds itself it. They are working hard in the most trying circumstances. Negotiations must continue in good faith with the law, the public interest and the thousands of SABC staff in mind,” said Van Damme.
The department of communications did not respond to requests for comment on Monday. Ndabeni-Abrahams is expected to provide an update on the crisis at the SABC when she delivers her budget vote speech in parliament on Wednesday.
Although Mboweni declined to grant the SABC the government guarantee, he said in his letter he recognises the immediate need for the public broadcaster to be assisted with some form of assistance.
“As a result I have charged my director-general with determining how the SABC can be assisted through the funds provided within the contingency reserve. The possible allocation of this funding will however be subject to budgetary processes. My officials will be in contact with the officials from the department of communications in order to facilitate this process,” said Mboweni.
According to Media Monitoring Africa director William Bird, the current challenges at the SABC stem from political interference, and not so much the challenging economic environment.
“This is a deepening of an existing financial crisis, one our government has known about and promised several times to resolve through a guarantee,” said Bird. “To date that has not been forthcoming. All evidence suggests the SABC has been making significant cost savings and is doing what it can to recoup stolen or misappropriated funds.”
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