 TVIEC Press Release, 18 December 2009 New SABC board & CEO; Payments still outstanding; Combined SA industry workshop scheduled, 3-4 February 2009 1. Welcome to the incoming SABC board and GCEO The Television Industry Emergency Coalition congratulates the new SABC board on their ratification and welcomes Doctor Ben Ngubane as Chairman, Ms Felleng Sekha as Deputy Chair, as well as Mr Solly Mokoetle as GCEO. We are indeed pleased that 2010 will start of with fresh leadership and look forward to working with the new board and GCEO to turning the SABC around into a profitable institution that is answerable to the South African public and a jewel in our national crown. However, while we welcome the new GCEO, we question why the interim board made this sudden and unexpected announcement and did not defer the appointment to the incoming permanent board given that they are weeks away from taking the helm of the SABC. This seems to undermine the incoming board from the outset. We trust the GCEO and the new board will meet as soon as possible to forge a relationship of their own. We also wish to state that we are very disappointed that the SABC Interim Board has not kept its word to our sector in resolving the crisis around non-payment to producers and artists. There remain millions of rands in unpaid debt to the independent production sector and this amount is growing daily due to repeat broadcasts that are not being paid to actors, writers and production companies. Despite numerous promises by the Interim Board that paying the independent production sector was one of the clear objectives of their tenure, this has not been achieved and we feel duped. We call upon the new board and GCEO to act swiftly in resolving the matter of outstanding debt to our sector as unfortunately the Interim Board and management have abused the goodwill of the independent production sector and people now demand payment to be made swiftly and without further delays. This must be a priority on their incoming Board’s agenda, together with resolving the ongoing operational crisis at the SABC. To this end we commit to working with the GCEO and board to ensure that this matter is now swiftly settled. 2. Formalised labour meets formalised business The crisis at the SABC has seen a historic coming together of formalised business and labour in the film and television industry. The CWUSA (Creative Workers Union of South Africa), IPO (Independent Producers Association) and SASFED (South African Screen Federation) have committed to a two-day workshop on the 3rd and 4th of February to seek out and agree to a common vision and roadmap for the industry with a focus on building sustainable livelihoods for creative workers and businesses. Key issues will be intellectual property ownership, fair trade and financial agreements between broadcasters, producers and artists - and a revitalised focus on building local content. Our industry has paid a heavy price for the management and financial crisis at the SABC. It has led to company closures, retrenchments and job losses. We cannot let that happen again. We are committed to building a sustainable and responsible production sector that is able to meet the demands and needs of our democracy and economy, and offer sustainable employment in line with the objectives of our government. Our sector has huge capacity for job creation and we are committed to growing and developing skills. We commit our support to President Zuma’s call to the nation to continue working to create a united cohesive society out of our fragmented past. To continue promoting unity in diversity and to develop a shared value system based on the spirit of community solidarity and a caring society. We are committed to become active citizens in the renewal of our country and within our sector to work together, to help where we can to speed up its economic growth and sustainability and to create decent work and sustainable livelihoods for all in our industry. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: [email protected] Charl: 082-6813680 This press release is written on behalf of the TVIEC (Television Industry Emergency Coalition) which consists of: IPO (Independent Producers Organization), SASFED (South African Screen Federation), TPA (The Producers Alliance), DFA (Documentary Filmmakers Association), WGSA (Writers Guild of South Africa) as well as the CWU (Creative Workers Union). -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail to this address (repeat): [email protected] . |
