In South Africa, a Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies subcommittee has been granted permission by the National Assembly’s Chair of Chairpersons for Committees and Oversight to assemble on Thursday, 24 November 2022, to deliberate and recommend to the full committee the names of candidates to be considered for non-executive Board of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).
BMA understands that a meeting of the full committee will follow the subcommittee’s meeting after the National Assembly’s sitting. The committee requested these meetings after receiving a final list of candidates vetted by the State Security Agency (SSA).
On 9 September 2022, the subcommittee shortlisted 37 candidates to fill 12 vacancies on the SABC Board. Names of the candidates were then forwarded to the SSA for vetting. Thirty-four candidates were interviewed from 13 to 16 September after three withdrew from the process. As a result, the subcommittee had to pause its recruitment process while waiting for all candidates to be vetted by the SSA.
The process was paused when the subcommittee was scheduled to deliberate and recommend a final list of candidates for consideration by a full committee and subsequently by the National Assembly.
