The Democratic Alliance (DA) political party has asked MultiChoice to release the full contract and make public the agreement Naspers' pay-TV arm has with Newzroom Afrika to start a new local TV news channel on DStv to replace the controversial "Gupta-news" ANN7 that was rebranded as Afro Worldview and eventually shut down a week ago.
The political party also wants MultiChoice to make public to South Africa the entire list of bidders who submitted plans to start a news channel to replace ANN7/Afro Worldview.
The DA says that it has asked MultiChoice, under the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) to release the "full terms of agreement" between MultiChoice and Newzroom Afrika.
In the week MultiChoice announced that it has chosen Newzroom Afrika as the new 24-hour local TV news channel to replace Mzwanele Manyi's dumped Afro Worldview channel on DStv.
Newzroom Afrika will launch in early 2019 on DStv and will take the channel number of 405 on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform, the one where ANN7 that turned into Afro Worldview, launched and was dumped a week ago.
Newzroom Afrika, following after eNCA (DStv 403) and SABC News (DStv 404) will be made available to all DStv subscribers, meaning that it will have a wider reach that eMedia Investment's eNCA.
The two directors heading up Newzroom Afrika are Thokozani Nkosi of the production company Eclipse TV, and Thabile Ngwato of Rapid Innovation
"Past experieces with MultiChoice, especially with regards to their suspicious relationship and payments to ANN7, require the need for transparency and openness," says Phumzile Van Damme, the Democratic Alliance member of parliament (MP) and the political party's shadow minister of communications in a statement released on Sunday.
"It is for this reason the DA has requested that MultiChoice make public their agreement with Newzroom Afrika, the list of bidders for the DStv channel 405 contract, and the ranking of the shortlisted bidders and relevant documentation for the DStv 405 contract".
"The DA is of the view that this information is in the best interest of the public as they need assurance that the hard-earned money they pay for their DStv subscription fees are utilised in an ethical and transparent manner."
"We trust that, in good faith, MultiChoice will open its books to the public in order to give assurance that there was nothing untoward in the awarding of the contract to Newzroom Afrika, and this will not be another ANN7."
"Past experieces with MultiChoice, especially with regards to their suspicious relationship and payments to ANN7, require the need for transparency and openness," says Phumzile Van Damme, the Democratic Alliance member of parliament (MP) and the political party's shadow minister of communications in a statement released on Sunday.
"It is for this reason the DA has requested that MultiChoice make public their agreement with Newzroom Afrika, the list of bidders for the DStv channel 405 contract, and the ranking of the shortlisted bidders and relevant documentation for the DStv 405 contract".
"The DA is of the view that this information is in the best interest of the public as they need assurance that the hard-earned money they pay for their DStv subscription fees are utilised in an ethical and transparent manner."
"We trust that, in good faith, MultiChoice will open its books to the public in order to give assurance that there was nothing untoward in the awarding of the contract to Newzroom Afrika, and this will not be another ANN7."
