Court dismisses MK party’s bid to stop SABC using ‘GNU’ term

The Johannesburg High Court has dismissed the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party’s bid to invalidate the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC)’s use of the term “Government of National Unity” (GNU) with costs.

On Friday, the court ruled that it lacks the jurisdiction to bar the public broadcaster from using the term.

“This is not a constitutional matter, and it is not one where the court has jurisdiction. Furthermore, the CEO simply does not have the power which the applicants seek to invoke,” Judge Denise Carol Fisher wrote in her electronic judgement.

High court dismisses MK party’s bid with costs

The party, led by former president Jacob Zuma, clashed with the SABC’s lawyers in the Johannesburg High Court on Monday, accusing the broadcaster of misleading the country by using the term.

The MK party insisted that the term GNU is incorrect and should not be used by the public broadcaster.

“The challenges is so obviously without foundation that it is difficult to accept that it has been brought to further any real interest either of the applicants or more generally,” Fisher said.

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The court dismissed the application with costs, including the fees for both counsels.

On Monday, Advocate Dali Mpofu, representing the MK party, argued that the use of the term GNU is incorrect because parties such as the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and the MK party have been excluded from government.

Party clashed with the SABC’s lawyers on Monday

Mpofu emphasised that national unity is a serious matter and urged the SABC to treat it accordingly.

The SABC’s lawyer, Terry Motau, told the court that the broadcaster had not broken any editorial rules by referring to the current government as a GNU.

Motau said the MK party had failed to use existing structures in the SABC to voice its complaint. He said it could have also reached out to the Broadcasting Complaints Commission of South Africa (BCCSA).

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Additional reporting by Itumeleng Mafisa