The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) says newly-appointed head of legal services, Ntuthezelo Vanara, will assist the public broadcaster in ensuring adherence to good governance.
Many analysts say the SABC has, in recent years, suffered from maladministration at top management level and the new executive and board have their work cut-out in returning the cash-strapped public broadcaster to a sound financial footing.
The SABC is looking into the possibility of cost-cutting measures, including possible retrenchments, as well as increasing advertising and licence revenue.
SABC Chief Executive Officer Madoda Mxakwe says Vanara’s extensive experience including at Parliament as legal manager will serve him well as the public broadcaster seeks to return to good governance and accountability.
SABC reacts to the DA
Meanwhile the SABC says it has noted with concern what it says is the factually incorrect and misleading media statement issued by the DA, claiming a memo was issued to SABC employees “indicating a freeze of salary increases and hiring of new staff”.
The SABC says at no stage in the internal notice to staff did the SABC management indicate a freeze on salary increases.
SABC Spokesperson Neo Momodu explains: “In fact, despite tough economic conditions and the dire financial situation of the SABC, we successfully negotiated salary increases with organised labour, which were paid to all eligible employees at the end of September 2018. So this DA statement is therefore misleading. It must be understood that annual salary increases are a collective bargaining process with organised labour and this particular process was initiated in May 2018 and implemented at the end of September 2018. So this DA statement is therefore misleading.”
