A Johannesburg High Court judge on Tuesday appealed to South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) chief executive Dali Mpofu and the SABC board to resolve their dispute over his suspension outside the courts.
Judge Mahomed Jajbhay postponed the case, dealing with Mpofu’s third suspension in less than two months, to next week, but called on the parties to consider outside mediation.
”This matter is postponed to Tuesday July 1 2008. In the meantime, please — I speak the voice of the nation, the judiciary speaks the voice of the nation — forget your personal differences. Please try to resolve this matter … it can be resolved,” said Jajbhay.
”That is a personal plea I make from the bench … this matter is able to be resolved outside the court.”
The judge even offered his own mediation skills.
”I’m happy to do it outside my judiciary capacity … I make the offer on a very serious note. It’s in the national interest to resolve this matter once and for all,” he said.
The judge asked Mpofu for his thoughts on the matter, to which Mpofu replied that he had been trying to negotiate with the board for weeks now.
After the court hearing, Mpofu told reporters: ”I made the offer [to the board to negotiate] … It was met by fire.”
The lawyers in court said they would convey the judge’s message to all parties involved.
Mpofu was in court to appeal his third suspension from the public broadcaster. He filed court papers last week that highlighted differences between board members, and wants the court to order President Thabo Mbeki and Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri to sack the board.
Mpofu was first suspended on May 7, a day after he suspended his news chief, Snuki Zikalala, who was accused of leaking a memorandum on Mpofu’s alleged bad management of the SABC.
Mpofu challenged his suspension and the Johannesburg High Court ruled in his favour. In his judgement, the judge in that matter expressed his concern over the independence of the board’s chairperson.
A few days later, Mpofu was suspended for a second time. On June 2, the court again set his suspension aside and denied the SABC board leave to appeal its judgement.
Meanwhile, about 50 members of the SABC’s senior management forum have signed a petition calling for the board to step down.
The internal politics at the public broadcaster have intensified since the election of a new African National Congress leadership at Polokwane in December, with management and board members apparently aligned to different factions within the ruling party.
Mbeki appointed a new SABC board, under the chair of Kanyi Mkhonza, shortly after the conclusion of the Polokwane congress. He was criticised for choosing board members perceived to be aligned to the presidency.
In the run-up to the Polokwane congress, which elected Jacob Zuma as the new ruling party president, the SABC was accused of bias toward Mbeki. — Sapa