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Johannesburg – The ANC on Thursday called on Communications Minister Faith Muthambi to fire or suspend the remaining SABC board members.
They continued to act illegally and seemed prepared to take the SABC down with them, spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said.
He said there was no board because its members could not form a quorum.
“Even the press conference they had today was illegal, because there is no board that met today and sat and decided on the press conference.”
It was important for Muthambi to act quickly and not wait for a parliamentary inquiry into the board’s fitness before dissolving it. The remaining board members were likely to cause more damage to the public broadcaster and should be fired or suspended immediately.
"We can't elevate individuals above the interests of the country. If they think that there is something that they owe to the nation or to certain individuals, let the SABC not be a part of that.”
Board members Krish Naidoo and Vusi Mavuso announced their resignations from the SABC board at a meeting with Parliament’s communications committee on Wednesday.
MPs agreed the current board was dysfunctional and ill-governed, neglecting its fiduciary duty towards the public and should be dissolved.
Mavuso told News24 the last straw for him was seeing the board’s presentation to the committee, which he said he had made no contribution to. He said some executives had been coerced into accepting severance packages, which he said was inappropriate.
Naidoo said that as a lawyer, he could not accept that the majority of his colleagues were willing to accept Hlaudi Motsoeneng’s appointment as acting COO. He said this was illegal.
On September 19, the Supreme Court of Appeal rejected Motsoeneng’s bid to appeal against a November 2015 Western Cape High Court ruling declaring his appointment as COO irrational and setting it aside.
The board subsequently announced it would reappoint Motsoeneng to his old position of group executive for corporate affairs.
At Thursday’s press briefing, SABC board chairperson Mbulaheni Maguvhe accused MPs of resorting to bullying tactics. He said he was "going nowhere".
Motsoeneng defended the SABC’s financial performance and his own experience and qualifications.
