BREAKING. SABC says the Democratic Alliance's 2nd 'Ayisafani' political TV ad is not banned.

The SABC tells TV with Thinus rumours are unfounded that the South African public broadcaster allegedly banned the 2nd "Ayisafani" political TV commercial from the Democratic Alliance (DA) party.

Unconfirmed stories suddenly started swirling on Wednesday morning that the 2nd TV advert from the political party had been banned by the SABC.

"It is not true. The SABC is playing the advert," Kaizer Kganyago, SABC spokesperson just told me over the phone. He also responded to an emailed media enquiry, also stating that "the answer is no! The ad will be played".

Earlier on Wednesday morning, the Democratic Alliance (DA) suddenly claimed that the SABC had refused to play its second "Ayisafani" TV commercial, saying in a statement that "the DA has just learnt that the SABC will not allow our second Ayisafani television advert to air in this crucial final week of the campaign".

The SABC banned the Democratic Alliance political party's first "Ayisafani" TV commercial on 8 April claiming that it "incites violence" and followed it up by banning a political advert from the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party two weeks later.

SHOCKER. SA BROADCASTING REGULATOR BANS POLITICAL TV ADVERT BANNED BY SABC, THEN ALLOWED, NOW BANNED AGAIN.

Freedom of speech in South Africa is under threat whether citizens of the Republic of South Africa realise it or not: the South African broadcasting regulator in a late announced meeting on Friday of its Complaints and Compliance committee, banned a political party's TV commercial which the public broadcaster banned, was then forced to show, and is now banned again.

In a shocking about turn, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) on Friday evening - shortly after announcing at 15:04 that a "public hearing" would take place at 17:00 on the Friday preceding a long weekend - banned the political TV advert of the Democratic Alliance (DA).

Nothing of the so-called "public hearing" was public where Icasa suddenly  bulldozed through a ban of the TV commercial as it is in its current form, reversing its decision of a week ago to unban the commercial after Icasa was threatened with legal action.

The shocking about turn from South Africa's broadcasting regulator a week later, now publicly shows that the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) has become as politically infected and its independence as severely politically compromised as the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

Icasa has now become complicit in silently, dutifully, kowtowing to the ruling political party.

The "Ayisafani" TV commercial was banned by the SABC which also banned a political TV advert of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) political party, although other broadcasters had no problem playing and showing it.

Last week the South African broadcasting regulator ordered the SABC to start broadcasting the banned DA commercial immediately. While the SABC then banned the EFF commercial, Icasa dragged its feet this entire week in holding a Complaints and Compliance hearing.

On Friday evening Icasa quietly suddenly did an about turn and banned the DA election advert at the public hearing which had no closing arguments - meaning that the EFF advert will also be - and effectively remain - banned.

By Friday night Icasa has not issued any public statement about the broadcasting regulator banning the TV commercial, explaining why.

The DA now plans to take the matter to court for a high court ruling.

The shocking about turn of Icasa comes after the South African Police - which today abused a South African TV reporter, physically grabbed his cellphone and deleted photos off of it at an ANC election rally - told Icasa that the DA and EFF adverts "incites violence" and makes the police look bad.

"The police should not be seen as a threat to the community," Wandile Tutani, chairperson of Icasa's Complaints and Compliance committee said.

BREAKING. SA broadcasting regulator orders SABC to start airing the Democratic Alliance political TV ad which it banned, immediately.

South Africa's broadcasting regulator on Wednesday night ordered the SABC to start broadcasting the paid-for political TV commercial of the Democratic Alliance (DA) immediately which the South African public broadcaster unilaterally banned last week.

The case was also postponed indefinitely tonight because the beleaguered and chaotic SABC unexplicably dumped its legal team between Tuesday evening when the case was first heard, and tonight.

Yesterday evening the SABC was unable to give basic answers to basic questions from the Complaints and Compliance Committee (CCC) of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa).

On Wednesday evening the SABC and its new legal team - now Terry Motau representing the SABC, with lawyer Ronnie Bokwa from Tuesday evening gone - arrived and suddenly requested "more time to prepare".

CCC chairperson Wandile Tutani however was having none of the SABC's unprepared mess and ordered the SABC to start broadcasting the "Ayisafani" TV commercial "with immediate effect".

South Africa's next general elections is set to take place on 7 May in 20 days' time, but will take place within a growing concern regarding major, undue and direct political interference into editorial matters at the SABC.

Political parties and South African civil society are vocal about widespread abuse at the struggling SABC and are accusing the public broadcaster of being blatantly politically biased in favour of the ruling party, the ANC.

The SABC unilaterally pulled the paid-for political advert off the air last week after showing it three times, claiming that it incites violence, that it contains statements not proven regarding Nkandlagate and claiming that one "product" can't attack another "product".

On Wednesday evening it suddenly came to light that the SABC got rid of, and now has a new legal team in place - suddenly begging for more time to provide the basic information, screening decisions and documents under which it felt it was okay to ban the advert.

On Tuesday evening the SABC and its then legal team - now suddenly gone - struggled to give any answers to basic questions the CCC asked, like whether the SABC screened and rescreened all political adverts consistently and in the same way as it did with the DA commercial.

The SABC was also asked whether it had a checklist for all TV commercials shown on all of the SABC channels and to provide a copy. The SABC couldn't answer the CCC's basic questions.

Other broadcasters have had no problem airing the TV commercial.

With the looming elections only weeks away, the CCC didn't want to postpone the urgent case brought before it any further and ordered the SABC's new legal team back to get answers, ordered the SABC to reinstate and start broadcasting the commercial immediately, and postponed the case indefinitely.

The CCC said the SABC must show the TV commercial and that the case will resume once the SABC has further "investigated the facts" and decide to return.

The DA political party in a rush press statement following the regulator's decision says "We maintain that the banning of the 'Ayisafani' advertisements was unlawful and unconstitutional".

"No amount of further preparation on the part of the SABC's legal team will change that. We stand ready to defend our advertisements at a future hearing".

SABC can't tell broadcasting regulator if all TV commercials are screened like the banned DA political ad; cant explain why it was played twice.

The SABC was unable to answer the South African broadcasting regulator's Compliance and Complaints Committee on Tuesday night after banning a paid-for political TV commercial, "Ayisafani", from the Democratic Alliance (DA) political party last week, and failed to say whether all TV commercials and all political TV commercials are prescreened, screened and screened again like what was done with the Ayisafani TV advert.

The SABC also failed to give a reason to the Independent Communication Authority of South Africa (Icasa) as to why the DA political party's TV commercial was shown three times before it was removed.

Other TV channels such as eNCA say they have no problem with broadcasting the political TV advert.

The "emergency" public hearing held last night was adjourned so that the SABC can find and come up with answers for the Compliance and Complaints Committee and will resume again at 18:00 this evening (Wednesday).

eNCA has no problem broadcasting the Democratic Alliance TV commercial which the SABC banned.

eNCA (DStv 403) has no problem broadcasting the "banned" "Ayisafani" political TV commercial from the Democratic Alliance (DA) political party which which the SABC last week suddenly refused to play, claiming that the commercial "incites violence".

eNCA has been showing the TV commercial since last week.

eNCA tells TV with Thinus that the independent 24-hour South African TV news channel "viewed the DA advert and even consulted our legal team. We find it acceptable and part of the political discourse in a democratic South Africa".

"Voters will make up their own minds about the DA's message and vote accordingly," says eNCA.

BREAKING. SABC bans 'Ayisafani' TV commercial from a political party critical of ANC; Democratic Alliance to take legal action.

You're reading it here first.

The SABC has banned a TV commercial critical of the ANC ruling party which was paid for by the Democratic Alliance (DA) and now the DA says it will be taking legal action of the refusal of the South African public broadcaster to show the commercial in the month before the country's next general election.

The SABC's famously matricless acting chief operating officer (COO) Hlaudi Motsoeneng apparently ordered the advert off the air.

In February the Public Protector's report found that Hlaudi Motsoeneng lied about his qualifications and having a matric, made up matric certificate symbols and "should never have been appointed at the SABC". He was also implicated in abuse of power, maladministration, several irregularities and being directly connected to the dismissal of everybody who testified against him in a disciplinary hearing years ago.

The DA's hard-hitting "Ayisafani" TV commercial (meaning "it's not the same") - in the same style as American pre-election adverts - slams the ANC for the R200 million Nkandlagate scandal, police members  killing civilians and rampant corruption, and asks: "Where are the jobs, president Jacob Zuma?"

In November 2012 the SABC banned the Fish and Chips TV commercial, "Dinner Time at Nkandla" which the SABC unilaterally pulled just hours before it was supposed to be shown on the public broadcaster.

The DA says it will fight the banning of the political TV commercial by the SABC.

"The reasons advanced by the SABC are spurious, and almost certainly illegal. This is a transparent attempt by the SABC to protect Jacob Zuma from any public accountability for the Nkandla scandal," says Mmusi Maimane, the Democratic Alliance's national spokesperson.

"The DA will fight this censorship. We have already briefed our lawyers this morning, and will begin legal proceedings to overturn this decision immediately".

"Political advertising regulations require us to approach the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa). We confident Icasa will dismiss the SABC's censorship and reinstate the commercial immediately".

The SABC claims, in response to a media enquiry from TV with Thinus, that the TV commercial "incites violence".

The SABC says it is the public broadcaster's view that the TV commercial "advertising to police killing our people, is cause for incitement to action against the police services".

The SABC also says the ad is false. The SABC says the Nkandlagate scandal "has not yet been tested and confirmed in a court of law".

The SABC also says "the Code of Advertising Standards of South Africa (ASA) does not permit attacking another product to promote your own", but concedes that the ASA "does not have jurisdiction over political advertising permitted during an election period" but that the SABC believes that Icasa would "most likely" apply the same principle.

The SABC says it banned the political TV commercial because the SABC "will not permit personal attacks on any party member or leader by any other party, as is being done in your advertisement in respect of president Jacob Zuma".

The SABC says that as a public broadcaster "we do not have any concern about generic statements regarding matters such as corruption or service delivery but do not believe that is is correct to pin such issues on any specific person, whether the preside tor anyone else".

The SABC says the DA needs to submit an amended version of the TV commercial.