PHUTI MOSOMANE
FOLLOWING pressure from political parties and civil society body Media Monitoring Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa has finally appointed a new board of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), almost six months after the term of the previous board came to an end.
The SABC had been without a board since October last year.
The appointment of the new SABC board was marred by several delays, including Parliament’s slack vetting of candidates by the State Security Agency (SSA).
Ramaphosa has appointed former National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) CEO Khathutshelo Ramukumba as Chairperson and CEO of the Association of Communications and Technology, Nomvuyiso Batyi, as the Deputy Chairperson of the SABC Board.
“The SABC is a vital institution of our constitutional democracy. I trust the newly appointed board members will work hard at ensuring that South Africa continues to benefit from a stable, independent and effective national public broadcaster,” said Ramaphosa.
The National Assembly voted and agreed unanimously to the list of candidates on 6 December 2022.
KHATHU RAMUKUMBA: SABC Chairperson of the Board
Ramukumba has been appointed as the new chairperson of the SABC Board, despite having no media or broadcasting experience. However, Ramukumba’s strong background in audit and financial management will be valuable to the board.
He is a qualified Chartered Accountant and is currently pursuing his PhD studies at the University of Pretoria. He has held various leadership positions, including serving as the vice principal responsible for finance and business enterprise at the University of South Africa (Unisa) since February 2021.
He also briefly served as the Group Chief Financial Officer of the South African Post Office between October and December 2020.
Ramukumba has spent over six years at the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), three years as the Audit Committee Chairperson of the Sekhukhune District Municipality, and served as a board member of Unisa Enterprise. He currently serves as an audit committee member at Unisa Enterprise, Northwest Provincial Government, Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature, and Limpopo Provincial Government. He also served as Chairperson of the Board of the Ekurhuleni Development Agency from 2018 to 2021.
PHATHISWA MAGOPENI
Phathiswa Magopeni, who was dismissed as the SABC Head of News in January 2022, has returned to the broadcaster as a non-executive director.
Magopeni brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in broadcasting, particularly within the news environment.
She has obtained an Honours degree, a Master of Philosophy in Education, an Integrated Marketing Communications Diploma, a Master of Business Administration (MBA), and is currently working on a doctoral proposal for a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degree with Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS).
Despite her dismissal, Magopeni has been able to successfully run the SABC’s coverage of the 2019 national and provincial elections and is expected to make valuable contributions to the Board.
Magopeni claimed that the disciplinary process that resulted in her dismissal was unfair and proved allegations of political interference. The ANC Head of Elections at the time and current Secretary General of the party, Fikile Mbalula, accused the SABC under Magopeni for the ANC’s dismal performance in the elections. Mbalula alleged the SABC focused only on the negative side on how the party failed to deliver services in municipalities.
MAGDALENE MOONSAMY
Magdalene Moonsamy, a former treasurer of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), has been appointed as a non-executive member of the Board.
Moonsamy is an admitted attorney of the High Court and a member of the Black Lawyers Association.
She rose to popularity through her active political involvement in the ANC Youth League, and recently gained media attention as Kelly Khumalo’s “watching brief” lawyer during the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial.
MPHO TSEDU
Mpho Tsedu, a veteran TV broadcaster with over 20 years of experience, has also been appointed as a non-executive member of the Board.
He worked at the Ministry of Communications and Digital Technologies and was seconded to provide technical advice to the deputy minister Philly Mapulane.
Tsedu’s advisory role was criticized by mainly the DA. He is the founder of the Institute of Foreign Affairs and is currently completing his PhD in politics. He brings valuable experience to the Board.
ADVOCATE TSELISO THIPANYANE
Advocate Tseliso Thipanyane has over 25 years of professional working experience in public policy, human rights, good governance, and democracy issues. He holds LL.M degrees in human rights, criminal justice, and constitutional law and is passionate about promoting and protecting human rights.
Advocate Thipanyane previously served as the head of research and later the Chief Executive Officer of the South African Human Rights Commission, where he spent over twelve years. He has also held lecturing and research positions at several universities, including Columbia University Law School (New York), Ramapo College of New Jersey, University of the Western Cape (Cape Town), and the University of KwaZulu-Natal, focusing on human rights law, politics, and criminal justice.
Furthermore, he has published numerous articles on human rights, national human rights institutions, criminal justice, and presented papers on human rights issues at various national and international conferences. Advocate Thipanyane believes that free, prosperous, and democratic societies cannot be achieved without safer and more secure societies.
Advocate Thipanyane has also previously served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Safer South Africa Foundation and is now set to develop his vision of safer and more secure societies in the public broadcasting space.
Ramaphosa appoints SABC Board of Directors
Ramaphosa appointed the following persons as non-executive members of the Board of SABC for five years, effective from the date of the publication of notice in the Government Gazette:
– Dr. Renee Horne;
– Advocate Tseliso Thipanyane;
– Mr Khathutshelo Ramukumba;
– Ms. Nomvuyiso Batyi;
– Ms Phathiswa Magopeni;
– Ms. Aifheli Makhwanya;
– Ms Magdalene Moonsamy;
– Ms. Rearabetsoe Motaung;
– Mr. David Maimela;
– Mr Dinkwanyane Mohuba;
– Mr Mpho Tsedu; and
– Ms Palesa Kadi.
DA welcomes the appointment of the new SABC Board
The DA Shadow Minister of Communications, Dianne Kohler Barnard, has welcomed the long-awaited appointment of the 12-member non-executive SABC Board.
The president’s delay in appointing the Board was met with pressure from the Democratic Alliance, Parliament, and civil society, lasting 185 days.
Kohler Barnard acknowledged that the delay was caused by the President’s and former Minister Fikile Mbalula’s dislike of a single candidate, Phathiswa Magopeni, but added that the whole country knows it. She suggested that many higher-ups in the ANC would be “licking their wounds” following the appointment.
“After 185 days without a Board of Directors, the President finally gave in to the pressure of the Democratic Alliance, Parliament and civil society and appointed the 12-member non-executive SABC Board after deliberately delaying the appointment for as long as he could … the whole country knows that the delay was caused by the President and former Minister’s dislike of a single candidate, Phathiswa Magopeni,” said Kohler Barnard.
Despite the delay, Kohler Barnard said the Board now faces the enormous task of addressing the SABC’s skyrocketing debts and the expiring contracts of the CEO, COO, and CFO in just over a month.
“The Board has a massive mountain to climb, with debts increasing exponentially, and the contracts of the CEO, COO and CFO due to expire in just over a month. The DA wishes them luck in their future endeavours, and hopes they manage to turn this loss-leader into the public broadcaster it is supposed to be,” she said.
Media Monitoring Africa welcomes the appointment of the new SABC Board
William Bird, the director of Media Monitoring Africa, has expressed relief over the appointment of the new SABC board. However, he also raised concerns about how the appointment process was handled by the President.
Bird said that he hopes to ensure that such delays do not occur again in the future. Additionally, he wished the newly appointed board luck, acknowledging that they will have to work tirelessly to stabilize the organization.
“We are relieved the appointments have been made but question how this was handled by President. We are anxious to ensure that delay cannot happen again. We wish the board luck, they will need to work night and day to stabilise,” he said.
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