The latest blackout of the SABC's channels came just a month and a half after the SABC's new CEO Frans Matlala promised South Africa's parliament in mid-August that blackouts of the SABC's services won't happen again.
The blackout happened at the beginning of this month, Thursday 1 October, when the SABC's channels unexpectedly went dark for over an hour for viewers who watch these channels terrestrially and not through MultiChoice's DStv, On Digital Media's StarSat or Platco Digital's OpenView HD.
Viewers of SABC1, SABC2 and SABC3 just got a blue screen instead of any programming.
SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago didn't respond to a media enquiry about the nationwide blackout and why it happened.
"Still no apology or response to the blackout. Like screw this TV licence thing," said SABC viewer Nicholas Busch.
"I think you people at SABC should get people who are capable to work at the different stations then there would be less issues like we have at the moment," said viewer Amore Peach.
"Are we paying our licences to watch repeats over and over again and if that's not bad enough, we sure as hell aren't paying to watch black screens either. Seems like there are too many incompetent people working there."
"I guess that we will never know what happened to the signal," said SABC viewer Sharon Riley. "That shows that they don't care about us, the customers, that still pay their TV licence."
"Doomsday Broadcast?? Whats happening with the channels??" wondered Thapelo Setlodi.
The signal distributor Sentech responsible for the SABC channels confirms there was a nationwide blackout of the public broadcaster's TV channels due to an electricity failure. An emergency back-up generator also failed to kick in.
