MPs to query SABC 'instability'

2002-08-12 18:49

Cape Town - The SA Broadcasting Corporation's apparent inability to retain its newsroom leadership will be among issues raised by African National Congress MPs when the broadcaster's board appears before the National Assembly's communications committee on Tuesday.

MP and committee chairperson Nat Kekana said: "My concern is that there appears to be no leadership retention strategy in the SABC newsroom. It's a big worry. We are concerned about the instability."

He was speaking on the same day the SABC's acting head of news, Mathatha Tsedu, officially announced his resignation.

Tsedu, who is also the chairperson of the SA National Editors' Forum, said he was leaving "for personal reasons and family issues".

He described his SABC position as a "pressure cooker of a job", saying he was not able to concentrate enough of his time on family matters.

Not the cash cow of yore

Tsedu was appointed acting chief executive of SABC news last month after the resignation of his boss, Barney Mthombothi.

Kekana said other problems that would be raised with the SABC's board, included the question of language policy on television.

"We are still picking up many, many complaints that television broadcasting is predominantly English. The SABC is not satisfying the language requirements of the constitution."

According to the latest Amps figures, e-tv was basically the number one English-speaking television station, and had overtaken SABC 3 and M-Net, said Kekana.

"We are concerned that TV3 appears not to be the cash-cow it was once expected to be, and has been overtaken by e-tv."

This had implications for advertising and the cross-subsidisation of the public service by the SABC's commercial service, he said.

Kekana said the board also would be asked to explain to what extent profitable African-language radio stations, such as Lesedi, were cross-subsidising other language-stations, such as SAFM.

- SAPA