Sentech, a state-operated technology distributor, is threatening a full SABC shutdown before the end of the year. If the national broadcaster does not pay its debts in full, it will pull the plug on 31 December 2025. However, the state broadcaster says it’s exhausted all its financial resources.
Shockingly, Khusela Diko told Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies this week that Sentech is owed R1 billion in unpaid signal costs. With the bill mounting by R70 million every month it continues to broadcast.
SABC SHUTDOWN
The debt owed to Sentech by the SABC threatens the survival of both SOEs, reports Daily Investor. Diko explained that both Sentech and the SABC cannot continue with their operations in the current state beyond 31 December 2025. Likewise, Diko warned parliament that a full SABC shutdown was likely due to outdated infrastructure and outdated funding model.
“It is at risk of total collapse and this may be the last chance of survival before a full SABC shutdown,” Diko said. SABC CEO, Nomsa Chabeli, confirmed that, “Because of legacy debt with Sentech, we are at a point where they will switch off the transmitters in December.”
BROKEN FUNDING MODEL
Moreover, Chabeli told Parliament that this is a direct result of the SABC’s broken funding model. “The TV licence model was designed for a world that no longer exists. Thanks to the shift from traditional broadcast to digital media. TV license fee compliance is only declining, and the fees have remained static for years,” Chabeli explained.
Meanwhile, the department has appointed a new partner to help avoid the SABC shutdown. Called BMIT Knowledge Group, it has the enviable task of finding a funding model for the SABC, reports The Citizen. Minister of Communication and Digital Technologies, Solly Malatsi, says the company will turn around an SABC shutdown before the year is out.
“Given the substantial public interest in avoiding an SABC shutdown, this represents a major step forward in charting sustainable solutions to secure long-term financial stability,” Malatsi said.
TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE
However, it all appears to be too little, too late to avoid a complete SABC shutdown. Draft legislation to develop a new funding model for the national broadcaster was initiated back in 2018. And nothing meaningful has come from it in the last seven years. Moreover, a meaningful replacement for the current TV licence model requires at least three years to be enacted … not three months!
In its last financial statements, the SABC revealed it had R40-million in liabilities versus assets. And it pays a monthly salary bill to more than 2 000 full-time employees. Each with an average take-home of more than R50 000 per month. Senior SABC management earn as much as R1.5 million annually. Precious taxpayer money can surely be put to better use than another SOE bailout?
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