Durban - A meeting has been called for next week to discuss a mooted name change for Lotus FM and the 90/10 local music policy imposed upon the station by its owners, the SABC.
Ashwin Trikamjee, president of the South African Hindu Maha Sabha, said the public meeting would be held at the Kendra Hall, at John Zikhali Road on Monday, to draft a submission for delivery to the SABC.
Trikamjee said the Indian community wanted the SABC to relax a policy introduced by SABC executive for corporate affairs, Hlaudi Motsoeneng, that required its radio stations to play 90% local music.
“We have received overwhelming support from people in Gauteng and the Western Cape who want to have a say on the matter as well because we are all concerned about the type of music that is being played since the 90/10 policy, and this is reflected by the drop in listenership,” he said.
Trikamjee said they understood the intention of the 90/10 policy was to promote local musicians, but said Lotus FM needed to be handled carefully because it served a specific a minority group, whose taste was not well catered for by South African musicians.
He said despite their representations to request a “relaxation” of the rules for the station, there had been no budging from SABC management.
The SABC last week denied that Motsoeneng had taken a swipe at Lotus FM and threatened to change its name.
The SABC said “Motsoeneng’s comments were taken out of context to create sensationalism”.
“In the context of a meeting which was held with Tsonga traditional leaders, Mr Motsoeneng emphasised the need for the public to engage the SABC on matters which affect their communities.
“One example given at the discussion was the naming of radio stations as an opportunity for the public to give input that is representative of their culture and traditions,” the SABC said.
Trikamjee said although the name change issue had been clarified as a misquote, he said the community was angry. “We were receiving calls from people who were saying we have to do something about this,” he said.
Trikamjee said Lotus had lost one-third of its listenership this year and the station’s revenue was down because advertisers were migrating with listeners.