by Thinus Ferreira
With just days before the current SABC board's term expires, behind closed doors an illegal plan is being hatched by lazy parliamentarians to stock the struggling South African public broadcaster with "temporary" board members following the shocking failure of members of parliament's portfolio committee on communications to appoint members for a new SABC board in time.
The SOS Coalition is slamming the illegal plan and lazy politicians, saying a temporary SABC board can't simply be appointed "because parliament has failed to do its job in time".
Knowing full well how long the process takes, and having been warned to start the process early enough and apparently not caring, South Africa's troubled public broadcaster now once again lurching into yet another crisis when it will end up without a permanent SABC board when the term of the existing SABC board expires on Saturday.
The dire failure is the mistake, laziness and lackadaisical attitude of the members of parliament on the portfolio committee who failed to start the process of seeking candidates for a new 12-member SABC board early enough.
There has not been enough time for South Africa's State Security Agency (SSA) to complete the vetting process of the 34 shortlisted candidates.
In a statement Boyce Maneli, chairperson of parliament's portfolio committee on communication and digital technologies, blatantly lies when saying the committee did "everything that it ought". They clearly didn't.
"The committee did everything that it ought to do insofar as the recruitment process is concerned. However, it regrets the possibility of not being able to recommend timeously candidates to the National Assembly and the appointing authority (the president) due to lack of vetting, which is out of the committee's purview."
Boyce Maneli now wants to make as if the shocking lack of the appointment of a new SABC board in time, is the fault of South African president Cyril Ramaphosa, when it is in fact the failure of Boyce Maneli and parliament's portfolio committee.
'Interim' SABC board illegal
The SOS Coalition is warning against the appointment of a so-called "interim" SABC board, saying it is "alarmed by the suggestion that an interim SABC board may be appointed".
"Present circumstances do not warrant an appointment of an interim SABC board," says Uyanda Siyotula, SOS Coalition coordinator.
"The appointment of an interim SABC board is an unusual circumstance and the rationales for it and the processes for appointing are set out in law in section 15A(3) of the Broadcasting Act, 1999. The only circumstance in which an interim board can be appointed by parliament is set out in section 15A(3) when the president, upon the recommendation contained in a National Assembly resolution dissolves an existing SABC board".
"Given that the existing SABC board is in place and operational, the SABC board has not been dissolved and not a single board member has been found to have been guilty of misconduct or unable to perform his or her functions, there is no basis for the appointment of an interim SABC board," the SOS Coalition says.
"The Act does not make any allowance for the appointment of an interim Board because parliament has failed to do its job in time."
The SOS Coalitions says that parliament's portfolio committee on communications "has been aware, for years now, that the term of office for the current SABC board ends on 15 October 2022, and it, of course, should have commenced the process well in advance."
"The public has been involved in the latest SABC board appointment process through making nominations, and making submissions on the shortlisted candidates, and parliament has completed all of the interviews. There is no reason why Parliament cannot simply finish the job and make recommendations to the president who in turn should make his choice of board members from list of recommended candidates."
"It is entirely unlawful for parliament to now try to circumvent the legislated process set out for board appointments in section 13 of the Broadcasting Act."
"The actual reason for the proposed appointment has nothing to do with the dissolution of the existing SABC board, it is the fact that the State Security Agency (SSA) is apparently unable to vet candidates timeously."
"In addition to the unlawfulness of an interim board at this point, it also doesn’t help to avoid the reality that those members would also have to be subjected to SSA clearance. We are strongly opposed to the idea of an interim SABC board."
The SOS Coalition says "It is indisputable that the many hurdles must be laid at the door of parliament's portfolio committee on communications. The SOS Coalition has repeatedly raised concerns about the role oversight structures played in the demise of the SABC. The committee's failure to run a smooth appointment process and appoint a suitable SABC board within the prescribed timeframe, is yet another example."
"The SOS Coalition wrote to the committee on 23 June 2022, enquiring about the public call for nominations that had not yet commenced and voicing out concerns about a rushed and compromised process, and the possibility of missing the deadline. Public nominations only closed in August, hence we blame the committee for waiting to be reminded of its duties and, even then, being tardy in carrying them out."
"The SABC continues to face challenges, particularly given its recent poor financial performance, the loss of R201 million in 2021/2022 financial year. It needs the continued stability of a properly constituted SABC board."
"The SOS Coalition calls for a timeous appointment of an SABC board, made up of members of the best possible calibre and skillset, that will work towards the continued stabilization of the SABC by continuing the turn-around initiated by the current board and ensuring that its role as a public institution supporting democracy is protected."
