The meeting between Parliament’s portfolio committee on communications and SABC board to be held on Tuesday 24 August will be closed to the media and interested stakeholders. The official statement issued by Parliament states that the session will closed as some of the issues “that may be raised either relate to pending litigation or may lead to litigation’.
There will be open session in the afternoon from 3.15pm to 5pm in Parliament in the Good Hope Chamber in the Good Hope Building.
The media and Democratic Party have objected to the closed session on the basis that the intervention by the portfolio committee on communications in the stand-off between the SABC board and the chairman Dr Ben Ngubane together with the GCEO Solly Mokoetle will lack transparency.
Here follows the official statement as issued by Parliament:
The Portfolio Committee on Communications will tomorrow (24th August 2010) meet the SABC Board from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 15:15 to 16:15 to receive presentations on the following matters:
The Committee is cognizant that some of the issues that may be raised either relate to pending litigation or may lead to litigation. To this end the Committee would like to demonstrate its respect for any pending legal processes. Thus, whilst the Committee at all times supports transparency it has, in terms of National Assembly Rule 152(1), unanimously agreed to receive inputs during a closed session of the meeting that will be held in the morning to ensure that it balances its obligation of effective oversight with the right of persons who may potentially be affected by matters that are of a private nature. The Committee is further confident that the closed session will ensure maximum participation and cooperation.
The afternoon session will remain open to the public and the media.
Issued by the Parliamentary Communication Services.
