Mass exodus from ANN7 forces Manyi into a corner

Mzwanele Manyi, who owns soon-to-be rebranded ANN7, has now been given an ultimatum by employees who have applied for jobs at an upcoming TV channel.

Some employees at African News Network 7 (ANN7), to be named Afro Worldview, have told Manyi they would rather be fired than resign after news surfaced that most of the employees were now affiliated with rival television station Vila Kasi.

Vila Kasi Holdings, owned by Channon Merricks, has confirmed several of ANN7 employees went for interviews at the upcoming TV station set to air in August, and had accepted appointment letters.

Vila Kasi holdings plans to employ 219 staff members between June and August. The company is in possession of 300 CVs from people in the media industry.

They have confirmed about 80% of ANN7 employees came for interviews and had appointed 150 employees in the past two weeks, with some from the SABC and eNCA.

Vila Kasi Holdings said they received reports of Manyi threatening staff members who went for interviews.

ANN7 employees have spoken out, and said they opted to be fired than to resign. TV news station Vila Kasi released a statement, according to reports, with the names of their workers, who mostly come from ANN7.

The channel scheduled to air in August will be based in Braamfontein, according to their Facebook information.

The ANN7 staff has reported Manyi to have asked them to distance themselves from Vila Kasi or resign, but claim resigning will only lead to months of no income before their next position at Vila Kasi TV in August.

The employees are opting to be fired than resign, forcing Manyi’s hand.

In his response, Manyi has said he felt insulted by his staff not clarifying their intentions to leave the station on time.

Vila Kasi took jabs at ANN7 in January by asking why ANN7 staff should be unemployed when they were available and could take over ANN7’s spot on DSTV’s Multichoice.