Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

SABC faces collapse

20/03/2017

20 March, 2017 - 06:50

The SABC is in chaos, with the finances of the state broadcaster in such disarray that a halt has been called to producing new TV shows and staff members fear they won't be paid. By Charl Blignaut

SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said this week that the organisation's finances were under pressure, with the SABC now funding its activities from its reserves , and put the blame on the global economy, the media, the parliamentary inquiry into the fitness of the SABC board to hold office and a lack of government support.

However, numerous senior insiders say the situation is far worse.

We're not even sure [if] we can pay salaries at month's end, said an insider close to the treasury division.

Hlaudi's [Motsoeneng] chickens have come home to roost ... It's worse than [the SABC's financial collapse in] 2008 - but this time it's not likely that anyone will bail us out, said another.

However, Kganyago insisted salaries would be paid and denied the crisis was worse than in 2008.

We collect revenue every day. Yes, our reserves are down, but we are able to meet all our commitments, he said.

A human capital management crisis

None of the highly placed insiders City Press spoke to wished to be named for fear of losing their jobs. They all said that posts were now frozen.

The problem is that Hlaudi went on a drive to make freelancers permanent and now we are stuck with an inflated human resources (HR) bill in finance, risk, HR, the executive, news, sport and marketing. They don't know what to do with the people because they can't be moved to critical operational areas such as TV and sales because they lack the necessary skills, said one.

Many of those promised permanent jobs received only fixed-term contracts, and now, says Hannes du Buisson, president of the Broadcasting, Electronic, Media and Allied Workers' Union, those contracts are not being renewed and, increasingly, former staffers are heading to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) because they had reasonable expectations of their contracts being renewed.

We have so far filed three disputes for freelancers who were given fixed-term contracts by Motsoeneng, said Du Buisson.

Our members had been working towards promotions, but the posts they sought are no longer open.

Tuwani Gumani, general secretary of the Media Workers' Association of SA, said the SABC had cut back hard on security staff.

We have repeatedly warned the SABC that it is facing a human capital management crisis. People are now being reduced in tranches, he said.

Regarding former freelancers, Gumani said: We predict there will be a substantial number of CCMA cases coming.

About the frozen posts, Kganyago said yesterday: There are a lot of people in the building, some are not utilised fully ... And they are asking where can they convert people's skills to fit the needs of the positions, because the wage bill is already more than it should be. So, until they utilise these people properly, these vacancies will remain frozen.

He said the SABC would be hiring only where scarce skills were required.

Regarding a surge in CCMA cases, he said: We do not have control over people going to the CCMA.

Growing discontent

Meanwhile, there is growing discontent over acting group chief executive officer (CEO) James Aguma, whose term Communications Minister Faith Muthambi extended for three months in January. According to the SABC's most recent annual report, Aguma received a 67.25% increase in salary last year, which pushed his package from R1.3m to nearly R2.2m per year. Aguma also collected a 13th cheque of R181 000 last December.

Kganyago said Aguma's was not an unreasonably high increase .

He was a manager, then he became chief financial officer and then acting CEO. Of course he had to get increases. Over a long period, we did not pay 13th cheques. But then we realised that this was going against our conditions of employment. And the board approved this, he said.

TV content producers are jumpy. Three insiders said no new TV shows were being commissioned and all the SABC will be doing is renewing existing contracts .

Said one insider: A memo was circulated recently to say that the SABC couldn't meet its commitments, so producers would not receive mid-month payments, which is standard when they first sign contracts. This may have an adverse impact on SABC3's relaunch in April.

Another insider said: SABC1 and SABC2 will be okay, but there is talk that SABC3 won't make it. They are making no money and no one knows how long they can stay on air.

One TV content producer said: I was in ... a meeting with senior TV people because they had stopped paying on a project I am attached to. They say it is just a delay. They assured me all contracts would be paid out, but there would be no new commissions. SABC3 is flat broke.

Kganyago responded: I don't know what they mean. Yes, SABC3 is not reaching its targets - that is why it is relaunching. Next week, we will be showcasing the new programmes, including local content.

Regarding a freeze on new shows, Kganyago said: That is not true. In January, we put out new content on SABC2. In February, we did the same for SABC1. In March, it is SABC3.

www.news24.com

Television

Africa South Africa
LINK: http://www.filmcontact.com/news/south-africa/sabc-faces-collapse...
See more stories from filmcontact

Most recent headlines

06/10/2025

France Tlvisions Wins Prestigious 2025 EBU Technology & Innovation Award in Groundbreaking Collaboration with Dalet

France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...

04/09/2025

Monumental Sports & Entertainment and Dalet Win Prestigious 2025 NAB Show Project of the Year Award

Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...

07/08/2025

Tata Motors & Dolby Bring Dolby Atmos to Harrier.ev, Redefining In-Car Entertainment Experience

July 8 2025, 22:30 (PDT) Tata Motors & Dolby Bring Dolby Atmos to Harrier.ev, R...

18/07/2025

Realm of Satan Disturbs the Comfortable at 2024 Sundance Film Festival

Blanche Barton, Peter Gilmore, Scott Cummings, Sundance Institute Director of Programming Kim Yutani, and Peggy Nadramia throwing horns. (Stephen Lovekin/Shutte...

18/07/2025

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, the Directors of FOLKTALES

By Jessica Herndon One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Fest...

18/07/2025

NESN Unveils Enhanced NESN 360 App for iOS, Android Devices

BOSTON Sports network NESN today relaunched the NESN 360 app with a redesigned user experience and upgrades....

18/07/2025

Berklee Singers Wow the Competition on Netflixs Building the Band

Berklee Singers Wow the Competition on Netflixs Building the Band Netflixs new music competition show features two Berklee artists looking to make their pop b...

18/07/2025

Trump Expected to Sign Bill Defunding CPB After House Approves $1B Cuts

As the House of Representatives voted early Friday morning to eliminate federal funding for public broadcasting, advocates warned that the elimination of $1 bil...

18/07/2025

Imagine Communications Sharpens Focus on Sports, Live Events Market

DENVER Imagine Communications has announced that it is deepening its commitment to the North American sports and live events market with investments in its prod...

18/07/2025

Netflix Beats Revenue, Profit Expectations

LOS GATOS, Calif. Netflix once again reported strong financial growth, with revenue increasing 16% year-over-year to $11.079 billion in Q2 2025 as net income s...

18/07/2025

Live from the 153rd Open Championship: SMT Enhances Video Board Experience; Enables Practice Scheduling for Players

Live from the 153rd Open Championship: SMT Enhances Video Board Experience; Enab...

18/07/2025

ShotTracker's Davyeon Ross on Revolutionizing Basketball On the Court and Beyond Through Tracking Tech

ShotTracker's Davyeon Ross on Revolutionizing Basketball On the Court and ...

18/07/2025

Home Pitch: How the Danish League Brought Its Live Match Production In-House

Home Pitch: How the Danish League Brought Its Live Match Production In-House Matchday Production produced 800+ matches across Denmark in its first year By Geor...

18/07/2025

Live From the 153rd Open Championship: EMG Debuts Spidercam for Golf, Expands Support for NBC Sports

Live From the 153rd Open Championship: EMG Debuts Spidercam for Golf, Expands Su...

18/07/2025

Usyk vs Dubois II: Bringing the Fight to Life with State of the Art Cameras and Graphics from DAZN and Gravity Media

Usyk vs Dubois II: Bringing the fight to life with state of the art cameras and ...

18/07/2025

Usyk vs Dubois II: DAZN's Head of Boxing Chris Glanville Talks Helicopters, a Ringwalk Spectacular and Directing the Action

Usyk vs Dubois II: DAZN's head of boxing Chris Glanville talks helicopters, ...

18/07/2025

Live From the 153rd Open Championship: NBC Expands Unilateral Effort; Shared Studio Gives Live From,' NBC Sports a Great View

Live From the 153rd Open Championship: NBC Expands Unilateral Effort; Shared Stu...

18/07/2025

Warner Bros. Discovery's Anne Graham on Training New Professionals to Ensure the Future of the Business

Warner Bros. Discovery's Anne Graham on Training New Professionals to Ensure...

18/07/2025

Live From the 153rd Open Championship: How R&A Spidercam Became a Reality for Golf Coverage

Live From the 153rd Open Championship: How R&A Spidercam Became a Reality for Go...

18/07/2025

ESPN Bulks Up Onsite Studios, Cameras, Player Mics for WNBA All-Star Weekend

ESPN Bulks Up Onsite Studios, Cameras, Player Mics for WNBA All-Star Weekend Besides the game, four studio shows will be produced onsite By Jason Dachman, Edit...

18/07/2025

The Sky Arts Awards Are Back, Live From The Roundhouse This September

Friday 18 July 2025 Credit: Marc Sethi The Sky Arts Awards will return on 16 September, once again taking place at the iconic Roundhouse in London. Produced b...

18/07/2025

2025-07-18

This month, players can dive into special crossover events featuring SpongeBob SquarePants in Snake.io+ and Crossy Road Castle, available exclusively on Apple A...

18/07/2025

Hurling Fans Flock Together for a Night of Craic agus Ceol on RT's Up For The Match this Saturday night

Up for the Match brings the fun, the passion-and a bit of Riverdance- tomorrow n...

17/07/2025

Realm of SatanDisturbs the Comfortable at 2024 Sundance Film Festival

Blanche Barton, Peter Gilmore, Scott Cummings, Sundance Institute Director of Programming Kim Yutani, and Peggy Nadramia throwing horns. (Stephen Lovekin/Shutte...

17/07/2025

Audiobooks+ Brings More Choice and Flexibility to Spotify Premium Subscribers

Spotify's goal with audiobooks is to help grow the publishing industry and create the best possible experience for booklovers, which is why we're launch...

17/07/2025

L3Harris to Expand Solid Rocket Motor Production in Arkansas

An advanced large solid rocket motor hot fire test conducted at L3Harris' Camden, Arkansas, site....

17/07/2025

L3Harris Has the Future of PNT Ready Now

L3Harris payloads and components have been on board every U.S. GPS satellite-more than 70 missions since the 1970s. Our technology is at the core of GPS availab...

17/07/2025

L3Harris Introduces Launched Effects Vehicles to Increase US Multi-Domain Superiority

L3Harris' pack of launched effects is comprised of multi-role vehicles that ...

17/07/2025

Nielsen taps Ryan Moore as Chief Business Officer of Gracenote

NEW YORK - July 17, 2025 - Gracenote, the content data business unit of Nielsen, has announced the appointment of Ryan Moore to the new role of Chief Business O...

17/07/2025

David Cohen Joins Miri Technologies as VP, Sales and Business Development

READING, Pa. Network technology startup Miri Technologies has added David Cohen as vice president, business development. He'll be tasked with expanding the ...

17/07/2025

Berklee Wins CASE Award for Standout Digital Campaign

Berklee Wins CASE Award for Standout Digital Campaign The Alumni Affairs team's Variations Signature Series earned recognition for offering an authentic p...

17/07/2025

Senate Votes to Strip Federal Funds for Public Broadcasting

Early Thursday morning, the U.S. Senate voted to cut federal funding for PBS and NPR in a bill that also included cuts for foreign aid. In a 51-48 vote, the act...

17/07/2025

British Innovation Leads the Way at IBC2025

GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland Pavilions across IBC2025 (12 15 September, RAI Amsterdam) feature a remarkable 34 companies, each providing unique, innovativ...

17/07/2025

SMPTE Forms Study Group on Content Provenance and Authenticity In Media

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers today introduced its Content Provenance and Authenticity (CPA) in Media Study Group (S...

17/07/2025

NBCU Reports Highest Sales Volume in History' for 2025-26 Upfronts

NEW YORK Despite widespread concerns about a soft advertising market, NBCUniversal said it closed its 2025-26 upfront negotiation cycle with a record ad sales v...

17/07/2025

Study: TV Ads Are Top Influencer of Older Adults Buying Retirement Homes

NEW YORK Television advertising remains an effective means to market and influence younger baby boomer and Generation X consumers approaching retirement age, ac...

17/07/2025

Service Electric Cable TV Deploys OpenVault PMN

ALLENTOWN, Pa. & JERSEY CITY, N.J. Service Electric Cable TV and OpenVault have announced that the operator is deploying the OpenVault Proactive Network Manage...

17/07/2025

FCC Chair Outlines Busy Summer Agenda That Includes Major EAS Vote

WASHINGTON Following up on his first major policy speech just two ago, Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr is promising to buck the usual summ...

17/07/2025

SES Receives All Required Regulatory Approvals to Complete Intelsat Acquisition

Luxembourg, 14 July 2025 - SES received the final regulatory approvals for the SES-Intelsat transaction, including the US Federal Communications Commission. O...

17/07/2025

Berklee Alumni Nominated for 2025 Emmy Awards

Berklee Alumni Nominated for 2025 Emmy Awards Twenty-seven Berklee alumni received nominations across categories in sound mixing, sound editing, and compositi...

17/07/2025

What We Watched the First Half of 2025

Back to All News What We Watched the First Half of 2025 Entertainment 17 July 2025 Global Link copied to clipboard Today, we're sharing our latest Eng...

17/07/2025

Vote for Ivory 3 American Concert D in the MIDI Innovation Awards!

Cast your vote in 2 categories for Ivory 3 American Concert DIvory 3 American Concert D is in the 2025 MIDI Innovation Awards and we are honored to be nominated...

17/07/2025

SVG Sit-Down: OpenDrives' Sean Lee, Michael Wilsker, and Jason Matousek on Evolving Data Management

SVG Sit-Down: OpenDrives' Sean Lee, Michael Wilsker, and Jason Matousek on E...

17/07/2025

Oracle's Geoff Tognetti on Staying Ahead of the AI Curve Through Further Adoption

Oracle's Geoff Tognetti on Staying Ahead of the AI Curve Through Further Ado...

17/07/2025

NBA's Summer League Is a Hot Bed of AI, Immersive Innovation Testing

NBA's Summer League Is a Hot Bed of AI, Immersive Innovation Testing Audio mixing, intelligent camera framing are among AI-driven efforts By Ken Kerschbaum...

17/07/2025

SVG's TranSPORT Conference Returns to NYC on Oct. 21; Register Today!

SVG's TranSPORT Conference Returns to NYC on Oct. 21; Register Today! By SVG Staff Thursday, July 17, 2025 - 8:29 am Print This Story | Subscribe St...

17/07/2025

Gravity Media Chosen as Group Name for Merged OB Business

Gravity Media chosen as group name for merged OB business By George Bevir Wednesday, July 16, 2025 - 11:30 Print This Story Gravity Media executive chairm...

17/07/2025

SES Closes Deal to Acquire Intelsat, Creating New Giant in Satellite Connectivity

SES Closes Deal to Acquire Intelsat, Creating New Giant in Satellite Connectivit...

17/07/2025

How MLB Pulled Off That Unforgettable Hank Aaron Tribute at the All-Star Game

How MLB Pulled Off That Unforgettable Hank Aaron Tribute at the All-Star Game Vintage content, state-of-the-art projection/processing combine in marvelous mile...

17/07/2025

Riedel Communications Powers Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour with Integrated Network and Comms Solutions

Wuppertal July 17, 2025 Riedel Communications Powers Handa Opera on Sydney Har...