BREAKING. Minister of communications, Dina Pule, suddenly blames e.tv and SABC for the hold-up of South Africa's switch to digital TV.

After ongoing multiple delays for more than a decade, little if any leadership from the department of communications which is support to lead and coordinate the process, South Africa's minister of communications, the embattled and scandal-ridden Dina Pule is suddenly accusing e.tv and the SABC for holding up South Africa's long-delayed switch-over to digital terrestrial television (DTT), a process known as digital migration.

Dina Pule who fought with e.tv and the SABC over who controls control over the the controversial set-top box (STB) control mechanism and herself thereby delayed the already delayed process, is now suddenly saying that e.tv and the SABC are responsible for "the current delays" in the switch to digital migration.

"I hope the SABC and e.tv are listening. You are holding us up," said Dina Pule at a press briefing in Johannesburg today. "The SABC and e.tv have yet to advise us on the set-top-box control system. This has resulted in the current delays we are facing."

"They know they are supposed to be helping me finalise the issue of the set-top-box control," said Dina Pule.

e.tv tells me in response to Dina Pule's statements today that "the minister of communications only withdrew her appeal in February - we couldn't do anything before that. Since then we've tried to take the matter forward with Sentech in a manner that complies with the court order - but we've had no success in this regard."

"The SABC and e.tv have now agreed a way forward and will be in a position to progress this shortly," e.tv tells me.