Phil Molefe instructed staff to run the story of his appointment as head of SABC news as an item on news bulletins and five days later allegedly ordered them to kill a story about board objections to his appointment.
In the initial SMS, Molefe also instructed editors to obtain comment on the appointment only from board chairperson Ben Ngubane or group chief executive Solly Mokoetle.
Molefe’s allegedly irregular appointment is a major source of conflict between the SABC board on the one hand and Ngubane and Mokoetle on the other.
The latest information raises questions about Molefe’s management of news at the public broadcaster.
The SMS message, sent out after Molefe’s appointment in May this year and leaked to the Mail & Guardian, reads: “Dear editors, the appointment of the head of news is an important development for the SABC and, indeed, the country. Comment on this story will be sourced only from the chair of the board or the group chief executive officer.
“It is not about the individual, but the rebuilding of news. I expect the morning bulletins to run the story, regards Phil.”
Five days later, when news broke that the rest of the board had not approved his appointment, SABC insiders say Molefe ordered that the story be killed on radio bulletins.
And while television bulletins carried news of his appointment, the SABC television news did not report the subsequent controversy.
The head of SABC’s radio news, Mapule Mbhalati, was allegedly threatened with disciplinary action after refusing to kill the story and running the bulletins. Mbhalati took early retirement after a showdown with the now-suspended chief executive, Mokoetle.
Molefe could not be reached for comment on Thursday.
Mokoetle, who backed Ngubane in his unilateral appointment of Molefe, was suspended last week by the SABC board. He has been accused of failing to draft a turnaround plan for the ailing public broadcaster and for throwing his support behind Molefe’s irregular appointment.
‘Total mystery’
This week Mokoetle filed papers at the Arbitration Federation of South Africa asking for the matter to be heard urgently. His suspension has opened up a puzzling rift in the ANC alliance, with the MK Military Veterans’ Association calling a media conference this week to voice its support for the suspended chief executive.
At the same time, Cosatu has backed his suspension. Cosatu spokesperson Patrick Craven said it was a “total mystery” why the veterans were backing Mokoetle in his feud with the board.
“Eleven of the 12 members of the board are united in taking the decision to suspend the chief executive, which justifies our support,” he said.
As the board had been properly elected, he said, its members would be given the backing of Cosatu.
The ANC Youth League has also thrown its weight behind the board, questioning why Mokoetle is using MK veterans to fight his battles.
Kebby Maphatsoe, the chairperson of the veterans’ association, said Mokoetle was one of its members. “We will never tolerate him being demonised like this,” said Maphatsoe. “The SABC board never favoured his appointment. It has bombarded him with emails and board meetings and not allowed him to do his job.”
It has been suggested that the veterans’ association’s underlying motive is to ensure that the corporation’s management remains loyal to Jacob Zuma and his circle.
During Thabo Mbeki’s presidency the board and top news management were widely seen as aligned with Mbeki and his circle.
Ngubane told the M&G he would attend a scheduled board meeting next week, saying it was “business as usual”.