SABC says Afrikaans remains important part of broadcasting mandate after ‘technical issues’

The SABC apologised for not broadcasting the Afrikaans news over the weekend due to “technical issues”.

Consequence management processes are underway to address the internal oversight that led to this unfortunate incident on Saturday and Sunday evening, spokesperson Mmoni Ngubane said.

“We confirm that this was a scheduling error. This should not have happened. As management, we are treating this matter with the seriousness it deserves and we want to assure the public and our stakeholders that there is no plan or decision to discontinue or deprioritise Afrikaans news.

“The Afrikaans television news bulletin continues to air as scheduled from Monday to Friday and the weekend bulletin will continue in its regular time slot going forward,” she said.

Backlash

Both the DA and AfriForum demanded answers after the SABC abruptly halted the Afrikaans news bulletin without notice.

DA national spokesperson Willie Aucamp described the sudden disappearance of the bulletin without any communication from the SABC, as troubling.

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“For many South Africans, the SABC Nuus on SABC2, which has a devoted audience of more than 300 000, has been an essential source of news and information. All of these viewers must pay for their TV licenses and it is unacceptable that the SABC would show such indifference to such a large segment of the population. As the public broadcaster the SABC has a duty to serve all language communities,” he said.

Previous scheduling issues

AfriForum’s head of cultural affairs Alana Bailey said the NGO will monitor the situation to ensure that further disruptions do not occur.

AfriForum also complained to the SABC management in August last year about the rescheduling of Afrikaans news bulletins and their replacement with sports or other events, Bailey said.

“It was then undertaken that the matter would be investigated and disruptions would be limited as far as possible.”

Access to vital information in one of the official languages of the country is the most important reason for the SABC’s existence, Bailey said.

A ‘struggling’ institution

“The institution has constantly been struggling with budget shortfalls in recent years and it is therefore incomprehensible that Afrikaans news, which according to our information is a key source of advertising revenue, is subject to fluctuations and omissions of this nature without explanation,” she said.

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“Afrikaans consumers are loyal and financially strong. About a third of the market is Afrikaans. This makes it even more incomprehensible that the SABC is choosing to alienate this market. It is choosing to kill a proverbial goose that is laying golden eggs.

“We are concerned about the role played by the public broadcaster. Not only Afrikaans speakers, but also speakers of other, smaller language groups in the country have long been dissatisfied with news bulletins that are broadcasted at inconvenient times,” Bailey said.

Freedom Front Plus weighs in

Freedom Front Plus’ Wynand Boshoff said the party also noted with concern the absent Afrikaans news bulletin over the weekend.

“But it seems as if it was a blunder on the SABC’s part. “One never knows when such a blunder is made on purpose to see what the reaction is,” Boshoff said.

“But it is probably now clear that the SABC can expect a strong reaction if the Afrikaans presentation is further diluted.”

SABC’s stance on Afrikaans

“Afrikaans remains an important part of our public broadcasting mandate, just as all South African languages are. The SABC is committed to providing equitable access to news and information in all official languages,” said the broadcaster’s spokesperson, Mmoni Ngubane.

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