Parliament dissolves troubled SABC board

02 July 2009 - 02:00
By Anna Majavu

THE beleaguered SABC board has been dissolved and Parliament has called on President Jacob Zuma to appoint an interim board to take the reins for the next six months.

THE beleaguered SABC board has been dissolved and Parliament has called on President Jacob Zuma to appoint an interim board to take the reins for the next six months.

Parliament also adopted a resolution calling on the auditor-general to investigate the SABC's R800million financial deficit, and alleged manipulation of tenders.

The SABC is calling for a R2billion bail-out from the government.

The now-defunct board has been in the communication portfolio cross-hairs with ANC MPs calling for its dissolution only a few months after it was appointed by former president Thabo Mbeki.

Last week its members told Parliament that the board was doomed to fail because of political interference. Some members, like former chairperson Kanyi Mkonza, pictured, argued that the board was a victim of the "post-Polokwane purge" in which individuals regarded as being loyal to Mbeki were targeted.

Yesterday opposition MPs said the ANC should also be blamed for the financial "meltdown" of the SABC.