SABC CEO Madoda Mxakwe denies editorial interference in Ramaphosa interview

SABC CEO Madoda Mxakwe has denied exerting pressure on sacked head of news Phathiswa Magopeni over an interview with President Cyril Ramaphosa in the build-up to the local government elections last year.

The public broadcaster has set up a team to probe the matter and another incident of alleged editorial interference involving board chairperson Bongumusa Makhathini.

Magopeni wrote a letter of grievance after she was charged over the airing of an episode of Special Assignment which had been interdicted in court.

She was sacked late last month after a disciplinary hearing.

Mxakwe this week denied threatening Magopeni regarding the interview.

“At no point did I force, bully or threaten Ms Magopeni to change her decision. I simply said Mr [Pule] Mabe’s actions were based on the outcome of the meeting we held on October 7 2021, wherein they undertook to avail President Ramaphosa for interviews on all SABC platforms,” said Mxakwe.

The SABC had met the ANC about concerns that it had not interviewed Ramaphosa.

Mxakwe said the ANC communications team had undertaken to deal with the matter and Mabe called him on October 24 to offer an interview with Ramaphosa in Limpopo, but the interview would be done at a competitor radio station, a proposition he rejected.

“I told [Mabe] that as the national public broadcaster there is no way we would allow our journalists to do an interview at a competitor’s station. We have three radio stations at our offices in Limpopo and any interview would have to be done at the SABC offices.” 

The ANC eventually agreed to conduct the interview at the SABC studios and Magopeni had not objected to it.

“Later in the day, Mr Mabe called and said they would bring President Ramaphosa to the SABC offices in Polokwane for an interview. I called Ms Magopeni to inform her of these developments. She informed me that SABC News would not do the interview with President Ramaphosa,” said Mxakwe.

Magopeni told him all SABC journalists were out in the field on the day and arranging such an interview would need a senior journalist and the interview was not on schedule, he said.

“As Mr Mabe informed me that the president was on the way to the SABC offices, I called the chairperson of the board to alert him of the developments. Owing to the relationship he had with Ms Magopeni, I felt the chairperson would be able to engage her, as he was aware of the concerns raised in the past on the president’s unavailability to do interviews on our platforms. 

“I have never interfered in the affairs of our newsroom, including the incident involving President Ramaphosa, and resent the way in which this situation has been misrepresented by Ms Magopeni. It is dishonest and disingenuous and I reject her allegations and her version of events.”

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