EFF STATEMENT ON SABC RETRENCHMENTS
Wednesday, 31 October 2018
The EFF notes, with disgust, SABC's move to retrench more than 2000 workers. The SABC has confirmed that is it technically insolvent and sees these retrenchments as a move to recover from total collapse.
The state of SABC finances must be placed squarely in the hands of the ANC government. It is the ANC which imposed, sustained and guided Hlaudi Motsoeneng's loot of the SABC. It is also the ANC's Treasury that is refusing to give SABC a guarantee letter so they can go and get help from commercial lenders. This is responsible for why SABC cannot help but cut off workers, and subject thousands of lives to the rising tide of hopeless unemployment.
We call on the minister of finance to step in with an urgent intervention by giving the SABC a guarantee letter so that it can mobilize funds that can save it from retrenching thousands of workers. It is clear that the current Minister of Communications has done nothing to persuade and fight for the SABC to be saved or given a letter of guarantee by Treasury.
Nothing is more devastating than a weak public broadcaster towards national elections. In fact, the greatest threat to our democracy is a weak public broadcaster, not saving it will result into the entire provision of television and radio services in private profit driven hands.