Communications regulator Icasa had taken more than 48 hours to hear a Democratic Alliance complaint against the SABC over the pulling of an election advertisement, DA MP James Selfe said on Monday.
“The DA is extremely concerned that the 48-hour timeline set by Icasa’s regulations has been ignored in this case, and that the hearing will now only occur in three days’ time,” he said in a statement. “The DA’s election campaign will be prejudiced as a result, and the ANC’s will be advantaged.”
He said the DA received a letter from Icasa informing it that a hearing into the matter had been postponed because the authority was not able to quorate on Tuesday.
Icasa said it would hold the public hearing on Thursday.
Selfe said the DA’s legal team had written a letter to Icasa on Monday afternoon asking it to deliver its decision on the complaint no later than 5pm on Thursday and that there be no further delays.
The DA laid a complaint on Saturday, and the SABC responded to it on Sunday night.
The SABC pulled the DA’s “Ayisafani” advert last week.
The public broadcaster informed the party that the corporation would not be able to broadcast the ad on radio and television as it incited violence.
The ad in question shows the DA’s Gauteng premier candidate and spokesman, Mmusi Maimane, standing in front of a mirror talking about the current state of the country.
He says life today is better than it was 20 years ago and gives credit to great leaders who he believes have taken the country forward.
“But since 2008, we’ve seen president Jacob Zuma’s ANC, an ANC that is corrupt, an ANC for the connected few, an ANC that is taking us backwards, an ANC where more than 1,4m people have lost jobs.”
Maimane then asks Zuma where the jobs are.
He continues to speak about news events such as police brutality and the R246m upgrade to Zuma’s private Nkandla homestead in KwaZulu-Natal.
The ad ends with Maimane saying: “Together we can bring hope, allow an environment that creates jobs. Together we can bring change for all South Africans.” — Sapa
