Tundu Lissu plans to return to Tanzania to fight President John Magufulis reign of terror after spending a year and a half in Kenya and Belgium recovering from a near-fatal attack. (Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images)
The SABC board held a press briefing on Wednesday after members of Parliament’s portfolio committee on communications agreed that the board should be dissolved. SABC board chair Professor Mbulaheni Maghuve said the committee was biased against the SABC.
Both Maguvhe and Motsoeneng determinedly stated they would not resign despite a consensus from the portfolio committee on communication that all members of the SABC board should call it quits.
The portfolio committee said that inquiry into the board should take place before the dissolution.
“I’m still waiting for the letter, bullying me to resign,” Maguvhe said. “Through the so-called inquiry they want me to become the coward.”
“Let the inquiry come. It means I am going nowhere. Let the inquiry come.”
SABC board members Vusi Mavuso and Krish Naidoo announced their resignations during the committee meeting yesterday. Members of the committee praised their decisions, but Maguvhe said they were undeserving of the compliments.
“We had members who resigned,” he said.
“It’s their prerogative to do so, but these members who were praised for being brave and honest and professional and what have you – maybe Parliament doesn’t know the other side.”
“Maybe the portfolio committee deliberately doesn’t want to know the other side.”
He accused the committee of making the decision to dissolve the board without caring about the facts of the matter. Members of different political parties united behind the decision made on the reappointment of former COO Hlaudi Motsoeneng.
The Supreme Court of Appeal has previously ruled Motsoeneng’s appointment as COO irrational and and unlawful.
The committee also said the current board of the SABC is dysfunctional and showed poor leadership. It was earlier reported that the auditor-general’s report on the SABC showed dissatisfaction that nobody in the public broadcaster had been held to account for more than R5-billion in irregular expenditure.
At the briefing on Thursday, Motsoeneng said the irregular spending had been historic expenditure that occurred over time.
Motsoeneng defends lack of qualifications
Motsoeneng has previously come under fire for not completing his matric. He said that although the SABC values employees with qualifications, it is unnecessary for him to obtain his matric or tertiary education, because he has risen without a degree. SABC employees were present at the briefing.
“I’m the only person from freelancing to reporting to grow within the organisation. All of these people sitting here, most of them, they have qualifications. But if you can take me head on, they know I mesmerise them because I have done it. I did not read from a book,” Motsoeneng said.
Motsoeneng also said that the SABC “is doing very, very well”, despite reports that the public broadcaster had incurred a R411-million loss.