The SABC on Wednesday set out in detail why it needs to retrench staff, with group CEO Madoda Mxakwe saying the public broadcaster is “technically insolvent”.
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The SABC is set to retrench almost a third of its workforce. The public broadcaster set out restructuring plans on Monday evening in which it said as many as 981 of its approximately 3 400 permanent employees may be retrenched.
A process called “digital restacking” could take up to two years to complete, delaying the allocation of prime radio frequency spectrum to telecommunications operators to 2022.
Communications minister Nomvula Mokonyane said government has set July 2020 as the firm and final deadline by which time analogue terrestrial television broadcasts must be switched off.
As much as it pulls at our heartstrings, the SABC’s sad attempts to invoke “Living the legacy” as a slogan should not sway government from ruthlessly resetting its focus on more crucial projects.
Government will give vouchers to indigent households to buy set-top boxes from commercial providers rather than continuing with a plan to run the project itself.
Communications minister Nomvula Mokonyane has welcomed the decision by the constitutional court, which grants the Competition Commission jurisdiction to investigate the deal signed between the SABC and MultiChoice.
Communications regulator Icasa has announced it will conduct a regulatory impact assessment on television must-carry regulations following strenuous objections by the SABC.
Despite severe criticism from communications minister Nomvula Mokonyane, the SABC intends pushing ahead with a restructuring that is likely to include retrenchments to reduce its cost base.
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