The Democratic Alliance political party says that it opposes plans by the South African public broadcaster to increase SABC TV licence fees.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) political party on Wednesday in a statement said that it is against the plans of the South African public broadcaster that wants to increase SABC TV licence fees.

On Wednesday SABC board members and top executives appeared before parliament's select committee on public enterprise and communications where Yolande van Biljon, the SABC's chief financial officer (COO), revealed that the SABC had drafted a proposal for an increase in SABC TV licence fees which was send to Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams, the minister of communications.

Yolande van Biljon told the parliamentary committee that the struggling SABC has less fresh content because the technically insolvent and cash-strapped broadcaster is using money that is supposed to go to content investment to pay staff salaries.

"The DA is opposed to any additional - what would be in essence - taxation of already over-burdened South African taxpayers, as well as those who are impoverished and struggling to put food on the table," said Phumzile Van Dam, the DA's member of parliament for communications, in a statement.

"We call on the public broadcaster to find new revenue streams to stay afloat instead of imposing increases to TV licenses fees. The SABC needs to find innovative measures to strengthen their collection of revenue as poor South Africans will, without doubt, be unlikely to afford increased licence fees."

"The SABC must position itself as a trustworthy and properly managed entity to encourage current TV licence holders to make payments."

"Furthermore, the broadcaster should explore purchasing content that will attract viewers – by doing so doing, they will see an increase in advertising revenue. Advertising makes out the bulk of the SABC's revenue, and an increase in advertising will surely be a boost for the SABC."

"We look forward to feedback regarding funding of the SABC – especially given the fact that the public broadcaster is still reeling from the financial consequences of well-chronicled years of mismanagement, looting and governance failures," said Phumzile van Dam.

"The public should not have to pay for the SABC’s sins through additional TV license fees. We trust that the current SABC management will prove its mettle, by steering the SABC to a profitable position."

Daily Maverick reveals it was a bidder for MultiChoice's new local TV news channel on DStv, says that despite 'the all-round silence, no comments' around non-transparent bidding process and bidders list, the questions are not going to go away.

The Daily Maverick online commentary and news analysis publication on Monday morning revealed that it was one of the bidders who applied to run a new local TV news channel on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform  to replace the corrupt and cancelled "Gupta-news" ANN7/Afro Worldview that was shut down on 20 August.

MultiChoice's highly-fraught and controversial South African TV news channel war is once again hotting up with public calls for Naspers' pay-TV arm to be open and transparent and to stop the secrecy around its TV news channels dealings.

Political parties ranging from the EFF to the Democratic Alliance (DA), as well as broadcasting public pressure groups are calling on MultiChoice to release the Newzroom Africa contract, as well as the information around the various bidders who applied, and their eventual ranking.

It comes after MultiChoice last week 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.

Daily Maverick, run by Branko Brkic as editor-in-chief, on Monday in an opinion piece by Ufrieda Ho, said that the Naspers-owned MultiChoice's dominance in the pay-TV sector "makes its operational decision-making processes matters of public interest".

"It has the de facto monopoly on subscription-based TV, with a 52% share and a penetration of 11.9 million households in 2017. Its influence in deciding who gets to launch a news channel, in the 2019 election year, makes its motives fair game for questions."

Daily Maverick quotes William Bird of Media Monitoring Africa (MMA), who says that MultiChoice's bidding process around the new local TV news channel has lacked transparency and openness from the beginning.

"The way MultiChoice is behaving - only telling the little they want to disclose to seem like they are making the effort to be transparent - undermines not just their own, but all, media credibility. It's why we've called for the shortlist of bidders to be made public and for clarity on ownership and who's funding Newzroom Afrika".

Jackie Rakitla, MultiChoice general manager of corporate affairs, in a quote to Daily Maverick said "We are not sharing the shortlist, evaluation and scoring of bidders as we are respecting the privacy of unsuccessful bidders who are employed within other media companies".

Daily Maverick said that "the all-round silence, no comments and off-the-record-only comment has caused rumours to fly - all of them untested - but unanswered, they are not going away".

The Democratic Alliance asks MultiChoice to release the full contract with Newzroom Afrika to start a new local TV news channel on DStv, as well as the complete list of bidders.

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."

Political analyst Dumisani Hlophe's appointment as SABC political editor slammed as 'a step backwards' for the South African public broadcaster over his bias towards the media and political parties.

The appointment of the political analyst Dumisani Hlophe, who isn't a journalist, as the SABC's new political editor at SABC News is being criticised as a step backwards for the South African public broadcaster.

Dumisani Hlophe is being slammed as "bad news" for the SABC by the Democratic Alliance political party over his media bias, his patriarchal comments and his comments on photos of half-naked women.

"The SABC's decision to appoint Dumisani Hlophe as political editor is deeply puzzling and worrying," says Phumzile Van Damme, the DA member of parliament and the party's shadow minister of communications, about the appointment the SABC announced on late Friday afternoon.

Dumisani Hlophe will take over as SABC political editor from Monday 3 September. The caustic and so-called Hlaudi Motsoeneng enforcer, Sophie Mokoena, was acting SABC political editor until she quit in July.

Dumisani Hlophe previously made appearances as political analyst on SABC News (DStv 404), eNCA (DStv 403) and the now shuttered Gupta-news" channel ANN7 (DStv 405) (rebranded Afro Worldview).

"Dumisani Hlophe is not a practising journalist, his only experience with broadcasting is as a 'political analyst' on the SABC with 'commentary' often odd and thumb-sucked," says the DA in a statement.

"There are many talented practicing journalists the SABC could have chosen from, who would have been a far better choice. Dumisani Hlophe does not inspire confidence at all. He is bad news".

According to Dumisani Hlophe's Twitter account, he appears to be a patriarch with tweets proclaiming men as heads of the family and commenting on pgotos of half-naked women, says the political party, noting that Dumisani Hlophe has shown "special loathing for the Democratic Alliance.

Dumisani Hlophe has tweeted things like:

 "The irony is: whilst @MYANC is keen to demilitarize and weaken the Left; it always leaves the Right to strengthen itself. It castrated @_cosatu;  @SACP1921 and now targets @EFFSouthAfrica nut it has no plan to weaken the right wing agenda led by @Our_DA."

"Where are the DA Headquarters? I am in Cape Town and I want to march there and demand the reintegration of Cape Town into South Africa."

"Maimane to stand for DA's parliamentary leader. Another darkie Zille project. Just where society will see a fake de racialised DA."

"The media dubs criticism of Thuli Madonsela as an attack on the Public Protector - interesting indeed. I think she is soft on the DA."


Dumisani Hlophe has also attacked South Africa's media:

"@pinkykhoabane in the quest to be ANC critic, the media overlapped to be an addition to ANC opposition. Hence, they contain DA journalists."

"The mainstream liberal media is a key player in South Africa’s politics. It is not an independent observer."

"No Bruce. That’s a mere bourgeoisie spin. Absolute liberal self-serving propaganda. The fact is: this shows a clear collusion between senior politicians in public office and business sector in advancing their mutual interests."


The Democratic Alliance says "we truly hope Dumisani Hlophe will prove our misgivings about him wrong and fulfill the SABC's mandate to be impartial, independent and provide a reasonable, balanced opportunity for the public to receive a variety of points of view on matters of public concern, especially during an election year."

"His appointment is a step backwards for the SABC, and is discouraging given the excellent appointments it has made of late."

Another 90 minute extended Carte Blanche episode on M-Net on Sunday at 7pm looking at the Guptas, highway rock throwing and dictator Robert Mugabe's playboy sons.

There will be another 90 minute extended Carte Blanche episode on M-Net (DStv 101) on Sunday at 19:00 of the broadcaster's weekly investigative magazine show due to the higher than usual age restriction of the film following afterwards.

This week's Carte Blanche episode on M-Net has a fascinating look at the playboy sons of the Zimbabwe dictator Robert Mugabe, and further explores the Eskom state capture saga involving the controversial Gupta family.

Carte Blanche also profiles the young train rescue heroes from Kroonstad, looks at the apparent disarray within South Africa's opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) political party, investigates the shocking highway rock throwing crime, and why telemarketing in South Africa has become out of control.   

First Strike From The AFU

This week the Asset Forfeiture Unit launched their first strike against international consulting company McKinsey and the Gupta-linked company, Trillian. Their preservation order freezes R1.6 billion, but that is just the beginning, says the NPA. They hope to recover another R50- billion. In an exclusive interview, Carte Blanche sits down with Suzanne Daniels, the Eskom executive, who was the first to recommend these companies pay back the money, but was suspended shortly afterwards.

Producer: Joy Summers

Presenter: Devi Sankaree Govender

Researcher: Tony Beamish

                         

Young Heroes

At just 12 years old, their selfless efforts to assist victims of the Kroonstad train crash have earned them the admiration of the entire nation. After witnessing the incident, the two boys fearlessly rushed to the scene to help the injured, pulling babies and the elderly from the train. Carte Blanche meets young South African heroes Evert du Preez and Mokoni Chaka.

Producer: Mart-Marie Faure

Presenter: Macfarlane Moleli

DA Future

As the governing party, the ANC is experiencing resurgence under the new leadership of Cyril Ramaphosa, trouble is brewing in the opposition camps of the Democratic Alliance. From Cape Town, to Port Elizabeth, to Johannesburg, major internal power struggles plague the DA.  Can the official opposition survive the political fallout in the Western Cape and its key metropoles throughout the country?  Carte Blanche analyses a party, seemingly in disarray.

Producer: Liz Fish

Presenter: John Webb

Highway Rock Throwing

It’s a deadly practice, often with fatal consequences. Gauteng and KZN have seen a renewed spate of rock throwing from highway bridges, causing serious damage to vehicles, claiming lives and injuring several motorists. But are these just reckless pranks or part of a devious plan to rob injured motorists of their valuables?

Producer: Nicky Troll

Presenter: Claire Mawisa

Telemarketing: Your Rights

We all loath those persistent telemarketing calls offering anything form insurance policies to cellphone contracts. Locally, it’s big business and when it comes to marketing phone calls, South Africa now ranks among the top 5 most spammed countries in the world. But is it legal to offer unsolicited credit or to keep your private contact details on a database after you’ve asked for it to be removed? Carte Blanche finds out what your rights are as a consumer.

Producer: Sophia Phirippides

Presenter: Macfarlane Moleli

Mugabe Boys

Pouring expensive champagne over a luxury watch to prove it's real is the kind of excessive behaviour that enraged Zimbabweans, but it’s also how Robert Mugabe’s sons, earned themselves an international reputation for party excess and big spending.  After years of splurging on lavish hotel rooms and designer clothes in South Africa, will Mugabe's fall from power put an end to his sons' jet-setting lifestyles?

Producer: Journeyman Pictures

Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) political party demands the SABC 'pay back the money' after minister Bathabile Dlamini's scandalous pay-for-play interview on Real Talk with Anele on SABC3.

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) political party is demanding that the SABC "pay back the money as it is complicit in the corruption of the minister" after the scandalous pay-for-play revelation that the minister of social development Bathabile Dlamini paid thousands of rands to the broadcaster so that she could be interviewed on Real Talk with Anele on SABC3.

The shocking revelation on Wednesday that the SABC accepts money for a politician to be interviewed on its airwaves - and not even disclosing it - has inflicted massive further reputational and brand damage on the SABC's credibility as a public broadcaster.

The scandal is also doing damage to the image of talk show host Anele Mdoda, the production company Cheeky Media and the show's executive producers Yusuf Stevens and Janez Vermeiren, as well as SABC3.

So far there been no official statements from the SABC, Cheeky Media, SABC3 or Anele Mdoda, with Cheeky Media that referred media enquiries to the SABC, and the SABC that hasn't responded with answers to media enquiries made on Wednesday.

The report from Daily Maverick exposed a horrific lapse of SABC editorial control and safeguards, standards and ethics.

Real Talk with Anele, Cheeky Media and the SABC, are in breach of the SABC's own editorial policy that clearly states that "where there is programme sponsorship, the sponsor's association with the programme has to be stated clearly, both before and after the programme".

They are also in breach of the SABC's editorial policy in terms of "information programming" that states that the SABC should "disclose all the essential facts and not suppress relevant, available facts".

Likewise infomercials and paid-for content in programmes on the SABC "must be labelled in such a way as to make clear that they are not programme material" the SABC's editorial policy states.

"We call on the SABC board to immediately institute an investigation and all who are guilty must face prosecution," said the EFF in a statement on Thursday.

"In addition, we call on parliament to also take the necessary steps to discipline the minister of social development, Bathabile Dlamini."

"The EFF condemns the department of social development and SABC for exchanging R500 000 of taxpayers’ money for Bathabile Dlamini to talk about herself on the SABC3 programme Real Talk with Anele."

"This is consistent with how ministers in general have been paying Gupta Business Breakfast briefings on SABC for interviews. Here, not only have departments paid The New Age, also SABC has itself done so."

"The EFF rejects the justification that Bathabile Dlamini’s interview was an advert for the work she does in government."

"The 80% of the interview was about herself and the ANC Women's League. In essence, taxpayers’ money was used to profile Bathabile Dlamini and not government social development work."

The EFF statement comes after the Democratic Alliance (DA) political party that in a statement also said Bathabile Dlamini must pay back the R500 000 that "could have paid more than 300 social grants. It is shocking that the department had the audacity to supposedly use public money for an interview".

"It is mandated to serve the poor, needy and vulnerable within our society, it is not mandated to use taxpayers' money to make floundering ministers look good." The DA said it would submit a range of parliamentary questions to "get to the bottom of this likely abuse of taxpayers' money".

So far the SABC board has been silent over the scandal.

There's been no comment or statement from SABC board chairperson Bongumusa Makhathini.

The SABC board also has journalists serving on it in the form of Mathatha Tsedu and John Matisonn with neither who have said anything so far about the latest scandal rocking the South African public broadcaster's credibility.

In July 2017 the SABC interim board member Mathatha Tsedu (now a permanent SABC board member) addressed the SABC's damaged credibility problem in South Africa's parliament and said "every time there is a cycle of bad news around the SABC, the revenues from the SABC TV licences dip."

"How do you get credibility back into the products that the SABC produces? The credibility of the SABC is not just judged by how Muvhango's story line is going or how 7de Laan's story line is going. The major credibility point of the SABC is its news output."

Democratic Alliance party calls for parliamentary inquiry into MultiChoice, ANN7 and Faith Muthambi; wants MultiChoice to publicly release its Gupta-TV contracts and dealings.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) political party is calling on MultiChoice to publicly release its Gupta contract for the controversial ANN7 (DStv 405) channel that DStv subscribers are paying R141.38 million per year for, and wants a public parliamentary inquiry to be held about the contract, MultiChoice's questionable payments of millions, and the involvement of the former minister of communications, Faith Muthambi.

The DA political party's call for a parliamentary inquiry into MultiChoice is similar to the call by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) political party also asking for  a parliamentary inquiry into MultiChoice's allegedly "corrupt" and "unethical" dealings with the controversial Gupta family and its highly-criticised ANN7 channel.

The calls for a parliamentary inquiry comes after fresh #GuptaLeaks revelations of the hundreds of millions of rand MultiChoice has been paying the controversial Gupta family who are linked to State Capture in South Africa.

"The DA calls on MultiChoice to publicly release the full contracts it entered into with the Gupta-owed TV station, ANN7, as well as the record of the prior negotiations," says Phumzile Van Damme, Democratic Alliance member of parliament.

"If there is indeed nothing untoward about the nature of its dealings with the Gupta family, MultiChoice will have no issue publishing the requested documents for public scrutiny."

"Should it fail to do so within 48 hours, the DA will request that the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) force it to do so."

"In terms of Faith Muthambi's unsurprising involvement, the DA will write to the chairperson of parliament's communications committee, Humphrey Maxegwana, requesting that the now overdue inquiry into state capture, as was requested of the committee by the deputy speaker of parliament, Lechesa Tsenoli, be scheduled as the first item on the committee's agenda in 2018."

Phumzile Van Damme says "the DA looks forward to MultiChoice's feedback and questioning of Faith Muthambi during the inquiry."

"This time she cannot be allowed to escape without being held accountable, if wrongdoing is found."

Political parties demand parliamentary inquiry into MultiChoice's allegedly 'corrupt' and 'unethical' dealings with Gupta-linked ANN7 and Faith Muthambi.

Political parties are demanding a parliamentary inquiry into MultiChoice's allegedly "corrupt" and "unethical" dealings with the controversial Gupta family and its highly-criticised ANN7 channel, as well as the controversial former minister of communications, Faith Muthambi.

Both the Economic Freedom Front (EFF) and Democratic Alliance (DA) reacted swiftly to fresh revelations that MultiChoice is paying ANN7 a staggering R141 380 000 per year for the low-rated and little watched channel.

ANN7 has been much criticised for its ongoing mistakes, biased coverage and for allegedly inciting racial discord in South Africa using DStv's platform to do so.

MultiChoice also made a dubious R25 million once-off payment to the Guptas for ANN7.

Both the Economic Freedom Front (EFF) and Democratic Alliance (DA) political parties on Friday called for a parliamentary inquiry into MultiChoice's allegedly "corrupt" dealings with the Guptas and politicians over the ANN7 channel.

The DA's member of parliament Phumzile Van Damme told TVwithThinus that "we believe that this issue be investigated by parliament, as part of the broader State Capture inquiries undertaken by the different committees in Parliament."

"We are in particular seriously concerned about MultiChoice, and what appears to be unethical conduct in this regard relating to the Gupta family. We intend on getting to the bottom of this."

The EFF's member of parliament Mbuyiseni Ndlozi in a statement says "The EFF condemns the corrupt relations of MultiChoice and Faith Muthambi which suppressed competition within the pay-TV industry with disgust".

"The recent revelations in the #GuptaLeaks show how Faith Muthambi as minister of communications worked with the Guptas to solicit bribes in exchange for protection of MultiChoice from the competition".

"Koos Bekker's company, MultiChoice, paid millions to the Guptas, through ANN7, in exchange for Faith Muthambi to adopt the policy of unencryption in the set-top boxes for digital terrestrial television (DTT) migration."

"The Guptas, through their influence on Jacob Zuma and Faith Muthambi, managed to guarantee their stay on the DStv platform whilst being remunerated unreasonable amounts of money despite their low audience numbers," says Mbuyiseni Ndlozi.

"It is clear that MultiChoice was paying them for securing a DTT policy in relation to set-top boxes that would maintain them as the sole players in the pay-TV space."

'The EFF calls on parliament to hold an inquiry into the Gupta influence over Faith Muthambi. In this inquiry, companies like MultiChoice must be held accountable publicly for their criminal activities in the sector, suppressing competition in favour of their domination."

"The EFF will also be reporting MultiChoice to the Competition Commission to investigate how they influenced the policy on set-top boxes in favour of their market domination."

South Africa's COPE and EFF political parties join the Democratic Alliance in calling for a boycott of the controversial and divisive 'Guptanews' ANN7 channel on DStv.

On Tuesday in South Africa the COPE political party called for a ban and thorough investigation of the controversial and divisive "Guptanews" ANN7 (DStv 405) TV channel carried by MultiChoice on its DStv satellite pay-TV platform, joining the EFF and Democratic Alliance political parties that previously called for an ANN7 ban.

The EFF and the Democratic Alliance (DA) political party both called for a boycott and ban of the slanted and blooper-filled ANN7 earlier this year, and the EFF again did so on Tuesday.

These parties have now been joined by COPE - representing the majority of South Africa's opposition parties.

COPE's call for a shutdown of ANN7 and a thorough investigation into the controversial TV channel from Infinity Media Networks owned by Oakbay Investments, comes a day after Oakbay announced that ANN7 and The New Age newspaper are being "sold" through a vendor loan for R450 million to the former ANC spin tsar Mzwanele "Jimmy" Manyi.

Jimmy Manyi is a Gupta acolyte and a frequent on-air "analyst" on the "fake news" channel that stews in biased news through slanted, rhetorical questions put to one-sided panelists and where the Bell-Pottinger PR invented catchphrase of "white monopoly capital" to deflect from South African state capture is employed daily, and often.

COPE wants a thorough investigation of the R450 million deal between the Guptas' Oakbay and Jimmy Manyi's Lodidox pop-up shelf company, and is calling for a recall of ANN7's broadcasting license as a TV channel on MultiChoice's platform.

COPE calls the Oakbay-Manyi transaction to suddenly "buy" ANN7 and The New Age in a debt sale deal just days before the Bank of Baroda closes their bank accounts "extremely suspicious", saying that the "transaction is clouded in secrecy, giving rise to more questions than answers".

COPE wants to know who and how the deal was financed, what process was followed, and if South Africa's broadcasting regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) approved the sudden sale of ANN7.

In June the Democratic Alliance (DA) called for a boycott of ANN7 saying South Africans can't "allow the Guptas' propaganda to bring the credibility of our media into question".

"Hardworking and dedicated journalist and staff at both Gupta media houses are being abused by the corrupted political agendas of the ANC and the Guptas. The DA stands in solidarity with these journalists and staff who report with integrity, but are under enormous political pressure."

"It is time to stop giving The New Age and ANN7 the time of day, and see them for what they are: The Guptas’ own Closed Circuit Television. It is time to stop all funding of ANN7 and The New Age, to put a stop to the Guptas propaganda campaign."

The EFF political party reiterated its call for a boycott of ANN7, in a statement saying "There is nothing 'media transformation' about this deal; to call it this is like thinking the apartheid's creating of Bantustans was a progressive liberation move for black people".

"Like Bantustan leaders, Jimmy Manyi is a stooge representing the entrenchment of Gupta corruption in our country."

"We know that The New Age has been a sole beneficiary of many corrupt deals in state institutions like South African Airways (SAA) and the SABC, as well as in many state departments."

"This means The New Age should be returning all the money it made through illegal and questionable deals like that with the SABC Morning Live Business Breakfast briefings".

"We are not blind to the fact that Jimmy Manyi will continue the business of fake news and reporting that characterises the Gupta media empire. This is because Jimmy Manyi himself has been central to false propaganda and the defence of Zupta corruption that is killing many state institutions."

"He is the cheerleader of kleptocracy and a mascot of the Zupta corruption."

An online petition that was started on 30 March this year and calling for MultiChoice to remove ANN7 from DStv has so far attracted 12 578 signatures from angry DStv subscribers, making it the 3rd most signed online petition at Petitions24.com worldwide for 2017 so far.

MultiChoice has not yet responded to the petition.

EFF's Juju slams eNCA as 'racist' and claims biased election coverage reporting; eNCA says it does balanced reporting; will meet with the political party next week.

As sure as there's sunshine, there will always be another summer season on Clifton's beaches, another strike season as unions toyi-toyi during wage negotiation season, and then, of course, election season.

During this period - South Africans go to the polls on 3 August - the elections cycle is always filled with grandstanding and posturing from politicians and one weapon from their evergreen arsenal: attacks on the media.

The TV news channel eNCA (DStv 403) has come under fire from the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) political party, with its leader Julius Malema that threatened the eMedia Investments channel on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform with mass action.

Julius Malema slammed eNCA for alleged biased election news coverage, saying on Twitter that "I think we should teach this racist eNCA a lesson by paying them a visit with the masses before elections because of their bias to the Democratic Alliance (DA)".

eNCA says its aware of Julius Malema's utterance, and says the news channel does balanced reporting.

"As an independent news service, eNCA is unequivocally committed to ensure that we treat all political parties fairly and provide our viewers with the balanced reporting they need to make informed voting decisions," says Anton Harber, eNCA's editor-in-chief.

"In addition, our election coverage is being monitored by Media Monitoring Africa (MMA), an organisation that strives to ensure fair, free, quality and ethical journalism on the continent, and we will use their reports to ensure that we meet the highest possible standards of coverage".

"eNCA's management has arranged a meeting with the EFF next week and will present detailed data around the channel's fair coverage of the party," said Anton Harber.

Democratic Alliance wants a legal review of the 'sham' disciplinary hearing of SABC boss Hlaudi Motsoeneng; says it was a whitewash.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) political party is seeking a legal review of the disciplinary hearing of the SABC's controversial chief operating officer (COO) Hlaudi Motsoeneng that took place at the end of last year, saying it was a sham.

Hlaudi Motsoeneng was found not guilty in mid-December on the 3 charges that remained in in a bizarre disciplinary hearing that saw multiple prosecutor and chairperson changes, several postponements, a cancellation, and continuation, the strange scrapping of charges from the charge sheet and witnesses not called and dismissed.

The DA says "we have asked for the transcript of the hearing and it is our intention to take it on review. It was a sham. Key witnesses were not called. There is no way that any court will regard the disciplinary hearing as having been reasonable. There were serious allegations made by the Public Protector".

"Hlaudi Motsoeneng's disciplinary hearing has been exposed to be the whitewash we always suspected it would be".

"In addition to seeking access to the transcript, the DA will take this decision on legal review on the grounds that it makes a mockery of the rule of law, the Public Protector's report and judge Dennis Davis' judgement".

While a Constitutional Court legal fight around the suspension of Hlaudi Motsoeneng as it pertains to his disciplinary hearing is now mute, another legal case is set to continue this year - the one between the Democratic Alliance and Hlaudi Motsoeneng over his permanent appointment as COO at the SABC.

The Western Cape High Court in November 2015 ruled that the appointment of Hlaudi Motsoeneng should be set aside. This judgement is being appealed and will continue this year.

The Democratic Alliance said that Hlaudi Motsoeneng's appointment was irrational and unlawful, given the scathing report on maladministration at the SABC directly implication Hlaudi Motsoeneng, and which was released in February 2014.

The Public Protector's report, When Governance and Ethics Fail, found that Hlaudi Motsoeneng had lied about having a matric, that his salary had risen from R1.5 million to R2.4 million in one year, and implicated him in the purging of senior SABC staff.

The Western Cape High Court found that Faith Muthambi, the minister of communcations, failed to properly apply her mind about Hlaudi Motsoeneng's appointment and "ignored a binding set of findings which required immediate remedial attention".

SABC pays out R42,6 million in golden handshakes the past 6 years to get rid of executives; enough for 26 415 annual SABC TV licence renewals.

The SABC has paid out R42,6 million in golden handshakes over the past 6 years to executives leaving the embattled South African public broadcaster - enough for 26 415 annual SABC TV licence renewals.

The country's public broadcaster has made it rain to the tune of R42,6 million in golden handshakes for executives leaving the SABC over the past 6 years, the minister of communications Faith Muthambi has revealed in parliament in reply to a question from the Democratic Alliance (DA).

Former SABC CEO Dali Mpofu was the biggest money getter - receiving a whopping severance pay-out totalling R6,7 million as well as an additional R4,4 million in a restraint of trade payment and an additional R2,1 million in legal fees, bringing the total to a massive R13,2 million golden handshake payout.

The former SABC CEO Lulama Mokhobo who abruptly quit without giving reasons less than a year (11 months) after taking over as the top executive at the beleaguered broadcaster was paid out a massive R5,6 million after not finishing her 5 year contract. It included a R4,2 million agreed separation payment and a R1,4 million restraint of trade payment.

Other SABC executives who got millions of rands from the public broadcaster to go away was the former SABC head of news Phil Molefe, paid R4,9 million to leave in 2013.

Phil Molefe was forced out says Gavin Davis, the DA's member of parliament and member of parliament's portfolio committee on communications, because he allegedly refused to bow to political pressure to blacklist Julius Malema from the airwaves.

The SABC's former acting chief operating officer (COO) Christine Mampane got R4,3 million and the former SABC CEO Solly Mokoetle took home R3,8 million.

Solly Mokoetle is now the head of South Africa's digital terrestrial television (DTT) migration project at the department of communications.

Others rolling in the money after leaving the SABC with golden handshakes include former SABC secretary Thelma Melk (R3 million), Zaiboonisha Jones (R1.7 million), Rapitse Montsho (R1.2 million), Jackie Motsepe (R882 000), Christopher David (R800 000) and Khulekelwe Mbonambi (R623 000).

"The amount paid to executives whose contracts are terminated prematurely averages out at R7 million per year. This is the equivalent of 26 415 annual TV licence renewals," says Gavin Davis in a statement.

"In virtually all of these cases, the executives receiving the payouts were purged for political reasons."

"As with other public entities, SABC executives are hired on the basis of their perceived loyalty to the dominant faction of the ANC instead of their ability to do the job. When deployed cadres fall out of political favour, they get dumped with a massive payout to soften the landing."

"This constant churn of deployed cadres is the reason why the SABC lurches from one crisis to the next," says Gavin Davis.

Even the ANC now acknowledges that there's a leadership crisis at the SABC. In its recent NGC discussion paper, the ANC says "the series of crises at the public broadcaster reflect a lack of leadership, lack of accountability and poor management."

The ANC says there's been a lack of "attention to holding those responsible to account for the financial and organisational maladministration that has brought the public broadcasting institution into crisis".

BREAKING. High Court orders the SABC to give live coverage on SABC2 of the Democratic Alliance political party's federal congress this weekend.

The South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg has ordered the SABC, which initially refused, to provide live coverage on SABC2 of the Democratic Alliance's (DA) federal congress starting today and taking place in Port Elizabeth this weekend.

The SABC only wanted to give limited coverage of the political party - South Africa's official opposition party - on the SABC's 24-hour TV news channel SABC News (DStv 404) on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform.

The SABC News TV channel has a very small audience compared to SABC2, which means that the SABC was denying public interest, although coverage like this is supposed to be given according to the public broadcaster's own editorial policy.

In 2012, a day before the African National Congress' (ANC) similar congress - that political party's last national elective conference in 2012 in Mangaung - the SABC gave that political party massive live TV coverage on SABC2 and featured coverage on extended Morning Live segments on SABC2.

The SABC wasn't prepared or willing to do the same for the Democratic Alliance party, although the SABC's editorial policy states that the SABC gives full or extended live television and radio coverage to "broadcasting events of national importance".

Earlier the SABC's head of news Jimi Matthews said he is not going to allow the Democratic Alliance to control the platform on which it is broadcast.

Instead of giving the Democratic Alliance live coverage on SABC2, the SABC and SABC2 wanted to stick to its "regular" schedule on Saturday of broadcasting repeats and the lowbrow Japanese game show Takeshi's Castle, and on Sunday more repeats and the American lifestyle show Iyanla Fix My Life.

SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said the DA wants to "dictate to the SABC" what coverage the public broadcaster is supposed to get.

The SABC has been unable to explain how it's fair for the public broadcaster to show one political party's election congress live on the SABC, but not another political party.

While the DA will be electing a new leader at the DA's Congress to replace the outgoing Helen Zille, the SABC told the political party it won't be showing any of it on public television, although the SABC recently gave uninterrupted coverage for the ANC's birthday celebration on 8 January in Cape Town.

The ANC's spokesperson Jackson Mthembu slammed the SABC on Friday in several tweets, calling the SABC "stupid" and a "fool" and saying the SABC's "failure to cover the DA congress on the free-to-air channel is so unfortunate, stupid and has nothing to do with the ANC".

"The DA congress is in the public interest. They are the second biggest party in our country. It's only a fool that will not know that!"

"The more we ANC members are not open about SABC blunders‚ the more we are seen to be working with them," said Jackson Mthembu.

Terry Motau representing the SABC, told the High Court that the live coverage would have financial implications for the SABC, since TV commercials were sold in advance for the timeslots the SABC would be forced to cover the DA congress on SABC2.

"The SABC isn't the only medium where people can get the results," Terry Motau told the court.

Anthony Stein, for the Democratic Alliance, told the High Court that the SABC should long ago have made provision and plans for covering the political party's congress and that "alarm bells should have been ringing" at the SABC in advance if there had been a lack of proper planning and discussion for covering the news event of national importance.

"The SABC is funded by everybody in this country," said Anthony Stein.

Late on Friday Judge Zeenat Carelse in the South Gauteng High Court ruled against the SABC and ordered the public broadcaster to give live TV news coverage on SABC2. The SABC lost the case with costs.

"The SABC conceded before Judge Zeenat Carelse that it had no case, by agreeing to the order sought by the DA," the Democratic Alliance federal executive chairperson James Selfe said in a statement.

"The SABC must act with political impartiality and must not display bias in its live coverage decisions," said James Selfe.

"This is a victory for democracy. Only through live political coverage on free-to-air channels can voters in South Africa make informed political decisions. Live coverage eliminates the potential of editorial influence over political events," said James Selfe.

"The SABC's SABC News channel on DStv requires an expensive subscription, beyond the means of millions of South Africans," said James Selfe.

Live coverage of the Democratic Alliance's federal congress will start today on SABC2 at 10:30 for the opening ceremony. Live coverage on SABC2 will start on Sunday, 10 May, at 13:00 for the announcement of a new DA federal leader.

The media crisis management of the SABC was again basically non-existent during the latest tiff on Thursday and Friday as the SABC's image and reputation was again seriously being dented further.

On Friday and Saturday there was no formal statement from the SABC regarding the issue and the SABC's coverage plans, and on Saturday no notification from the SABC on coverage and no programming advisory from SABC2 on the schedule changes to inform viewers of how the programming line-ups will be changing and what would be showing when.

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".

BREAKING. SA broadcasting regulator, Icasa, holds emergency public hearing on the SABC banning the DA's 'Ayisafani' TV ad.

The South African broadcasting regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa), held an "emergency" public hearing tonight, after the SABC banned a paid-for political commercial from the Democratic Alliance (DA) last week.

South Africans vote in the next general election on 7 May and the beleaguered South African public broadcaster remains firmly in the spotlight with a tarnished and highly damaged reputation of political bias, corruption, maladministration and undue, direct political interference into the editorial news coverage of the SABC.

Icasa scrambled on Tuesday to hold the public hearing on Tuesday evening, after the political party threatened to take Icasa itself to court as well, saying that the broadcasting regulator was flouting its own regulations and not hearing the case and giving a judgment within the prescribed 48 hours after receiving such a complaint.

The SABC unilaterally banned the "Ayisafani" TV commercial, claiming that it allegedly "incites violence", as well as other reasons, like that the TV adverts has "facts" not proven, and that one "product" can be used to attack another "product".

The SABC also banned five radio adverts from the DA on SABC Radio stations.

After telling the DA that Icasa couldn't convene its Compliance and Complaints committee before Thursday - and even unable to give any form of guarantee that the committee would give a definitive decision by no later than Thursday evening - the DA threatened High Court legal action.

Icasa on Tuesday afternoon pushed out a rushed urgent press release saying that Icasa will now hear the case on Tuesday evening at 18:00 at the regulator's head office in Johannesburg. The DA laid the complaint on Saturday.

Icasa spokesperson Paseka Maleka in the statement claimed that the regulator had followed its own 48 hour rule in "responding" to the case.

This all happened as the DA on Tuesday morning was filing an urgent application with the High Court to get Icasa to hear the case and give a decision by no later than 17:00 on Thursday.

This evening the Democratic Alliance's legal team argued in the public hearing that the SABC banning the paid-for political advert is infringing in freedom of expression in South Africa.

"The SABC is not a private broadcaster. It is accordingly obliged to fulfill the bill of rights. It is owned and controlled by South Africans and must be fair and unbiased," the DA's legal team told Icasa.

The SABC's legal team on Tuesday night told Icasa that the public broadcaster "acted properly".

The SABC's legal representation told the Icasa public hearing that the "Ayisafani" TV commercial is "not freedom of speech" and labelled it as "inflammatory".

"From a responsible broadcaster's point of view, we felt to flight the advert would create the impression that there is an imminent threat of violence," the SABC told Icasa.

Interestingly, other broadcasters and TV channels such as e.tv and eNCA (DStv 403) have no problem with showing to viewers.

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.