THE SABC board has been summoned by Parliament today to explain an "apparent crisis" in its ranks - but the media have been banned from the meeting.

The public broadcaster elected a new board last year, which was supposed to steer the SABC out of a massive R800million debt.

But board chairperson Ben Ngubane is at loggerheads with the rest of the board, allegedly because he does not consult them on anything.

Ngubane reportedly appointed Phil Molefe as head of news without consulting his board first.

And according to "Save our SABC" coalition spokesperson Kate Skinner, SABC chief executive Solly Mokoetle "ignored and overturned board decisions and has been supported by Ngubane".

Last week committee chairperson Ismail Vadi announcedhe was summoning the board because of "an apparent corporate governance crisis".

Vadi said the board would have to report back on the "controversy" around Molefe's appointment and prove to Parliament that the board was still functioning.

But yesterday Parliament suddenly announced that journalists would be barred from attending the first four hours of the meeting and would only be allowed in briefly in the afternoon.

Vadi claimed that "some of the issues that may be raised either relate to pending litigation or may lead to litigation".

He claimed the committee had "unanimously" decided to close the meeting. But two members of the committee said this was not true.