President Thabo Mbeki has denied that the government is behind the Koni Media Holdings’ bid to buy media giant Johncom, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported on Sunday.
He described as ”irrational” the media storm around the bid by Koni — which is partly owned by Foreign Affairs spokesperson Ronnie Mamoepa, presidential political adviser Titus Mafolo and former chief of protocol Billy Modise.
”Why do we create these scarecrows; and suddenly, big headlines about something that doesn’t exist?” Mbeki asked at a press conference after a three-day meeting of the International Investment Council in George.
”It’s unreal. It’s not real. It doesn’t exist,” he said.
”It’s not anywhere, but we persist in creating these scarecrows. Why do we do it? Maybe you know. Why?” he asked.
Koni Media Holdings announced last Saturday that it had made a R7-billion offer to buy 100% of Johncom, hoping to raise the money through the Public Investment Corporation (PIC).
However, later in the week Johncom told the SABC it had received no binding, unconditional offer from Koni Media Holdings.
‘They don’t have that money’
In the meantime, critics have accused Koni of wanting to take over the paper after its exposés on Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang.
Mbeki said the critics would find that Mamoepa, Mafolo and Modise owned 1% of Koni and that it was not illegal for them to own shares in a public company as long as these were disclosed.
”The figures that have been mentioned about Johncom. Oh I can guarantee you that these three don’t have R1-million — R1-million of these billions,” he said.
”They don’t have that money”.
Last month, the Mvelaphanda Group, headed by businessman and African National Congress politician Tokyo Sexwale, announced its plans to buy a 25% to 30% stake in Johncom.
The Koni takeover bid critics include the Democratic Alliance, which earlier this week described as ”unpersuasive” arguments that those involved were not fronting for the government.
Spokesperson Dene Smuts said the offer was ”highly reminiscent” of the apartheid government’s attempt to secretly buy Johncom’s predecessor, the old Morning Group: South African Association Newspapers, in the ”info scandal”.
The South African Communist Party said the takeover would further entrench the divide between the rich and the working class.
On Sunday, the South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) said that while it recognised there was nothing in law preventing such activity, it believed the potential for direct political influence over the media was ”unhealthy for democracy”.
”It is also undesirable because of the conflict of interest when a newspaper’s owners must choose between serving the public’s right to know and pressure to serve government or a political party,” Sanef said after a council meeting in Durban.
It expressed ”deep concern” at the possibility of political office bearers and civil servants acquiring interests in independent media.
Apart from the Koni and Mvelaphanda bids, senior office-bearers of political parties had reportedly shown interest in other media assets, it said.
The bid by Koni Media Holdings is of particular concern given that it takes place amid serious tensions between the government and the country’s largest weekend newspaper, the Sunday Times,” Sanef said in a statement.
It welcomed the radio comment by government communications head Themba Maseko last week that the issue of civil servants’ involvement in private media would need to be looked at by the government. – Sapa