Mail & Guardian reporter
The independence of the South African Broadcasting Corporation will be in the balance in the next few weeks as the political haggling over the appointment of a new board of directors gets under way.
According to the Parliamentary Porfolio Committee on Communications,105 nominations have been received for positions on the board.
Seven of the 23 current SABC board members are known to have reapplied to serve again, including board chair Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri, and board members Colin Hickling, Professor Arnold de Beer, Sheila Sisulu, Anna Boshoff, Professor Potgieter and Professor Njabulo Ndebele.
Closing date for the SABC board nominations was March 27 and a short list, compiled by the committee, has to be finalised by May 15.
Interviews with short-listed nominees are scheduled from May 15 to 24 in Cape Town. After the interviews, the sub-committee again sits down for discussions, draws up a final short list which is presented to Parliament and must be approved by the entire house, before being rubber-stamped by President Nelson Mandela.
However, with portfolio committee chair Saci Macozoma relinquishing his position on April 15, a new chair has to be found before the interviews can be held and a new board established.
The selection takes places shortly after Parliament rejected the portfolio committee’s nominations for new members of the Independent Broadcasting Authority. The committee nominated four candidates to the IBA: Lyndall Shope-Mafole, Raymond Louw, Pietie Lotriet and Maishe Maponye. Parliament accepted only Shope-Mafole, and the committee now has to start the selection process anew.
In rejecting the IBA nominations, Parliament has shown a willingness to interfere in the process of expert selection — and may be tempted to do the same with the SABC board.
Other SABC nominations received are that of Guy Burger, Carl Lotter, Nasima Badsha, Thero Setiloane, Mbulelo Mzamani, Derrick Swartz, Tami Bonga, Namane Magau, Christina Qunta and Rev G Setiloane.