The South African Broadcasting Corporation says it will defend an urgent application by the African Content Movement to cover its 2019 elections manifesto launch on Saturday.
The public broadcaster said it had been served with an urgent court application by the ACM for the broadcaster to cover live the party’s manifesto launch on Saturday on SABC 2 and SABC News Channel 404 on DStv.
SABC spokesperson Vuyo Mthembu said they would be "vigorously opposing the application", which was scheduled to be heard by the South Gauteng High Court on Saturday.
"The position of the SABC is that ACM’s manifesto launch will be covered by its news division as a news story. The SABC has not provided live coverage of manifesto launches of any of the new and existing parties with no representation in parliament," Mthembu said.
The ACM was launched in December by controversial former SABC chief operations officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng, who was sacked by the SABC in 2017. At the time, the SABC interim board said Motsoeneg had brought the SABC into disrepute and caused irreparable damage to the corporation.
- African News Agency
