by Thinus Ferreira
The SOS Coalition says the South African public broadcaster’s axing of the multicultural soap 7de Laan on SABC2 is bad for democracy and that the SABC’s inability to pay local productions is a very big problem.
“As the SOS Coalition we are deeply concerned that the financial crisis at the SABC is unfortunately affecting the production of local content,” says Uyanda Siyotula, SOS Coalition coordinator.
“The grim state of the public broadcaster’s finances has been made apparent by reports of the immediate shutdown of production on one of South Africa’s longest-running television programmes, 7de Laan.”
“Even though it has been reported that following partial payment by the SABC, Danie Odendaal Productions will resume production of 7de Laan until the final season is concluded in December as intended – the financial crisis remains worrisome.”
“Media reports also revealed that the SABC is struggling to pay producers of some of their popular shows,” Siyotula says.
“As the SOS Coalition, we are concerned about the impact this financial crisis will have on the local production sector. When the SABC cuts down on local content production, the detriments are not only limited to local producers but the creative industry at large, including actors and writers.”
“Further, cutting down on programmes such as 7de Laan that kept citizens entertained by playing a critical role in promoting cultural diversity and fostering social cohesion, is a threat to our democracy.”
The SOS Coalition says that “we have recently also witnessed how these financial constraints affected securing of the 2023 Rugby World Cup broadcasting rights.”
“The SABC board must communicate with the public its plan to pull the SABC out of the financial crisis it finds itself in. There must be transparency and accountability from the SABC along with a way forward.”