Johannesburg - Less than a week ago, SABC acting group chief executive Jimi Matthews was found to be furiously defending the public broadcaster, its chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng and the conditions at the company.
But early on Monday, he made a 180 degree-turn, explaining that the SABC’s climate had become too “corrosive” for him to remain in his position - resigning with immediate effect.
Releasing his resignation letter on social media, Matthews implied that his morality had been tainted for failing to object to recent policy decisions by the broadcaster.
“For months I have compromised the values that I hold dear under the mistaken belief that I could be more effective inside the SABC than outside, passing comment from the sidelines.
“In the process, the prevailing corrosive atmosphere has impacted negatively on my moral judgment and has made me complicit in many decisions which I am not proud of. What is happening at the SABC is wrong and I can no longer be a part of it,” he wrote.
However, last week, media reports emerged showing that Matthews had recently constructed a glowing affidavit on the SABC for the Supreme Court of Appeal bid to retain Motsoeneng in his post.
He said the broadcaster could “ill afford to lose a rare skill” in Motsoeneng, and that the COO had turned its finances around through his “unique leadership skills”.
Matthews warned that if Motsoeneng was not kept in his position, there could be dire financial consequences for the company.
Matthews himself was unavailable on Monday to comment on the contradictory documents.
Motsoeneng was appointed as permanent COO two years ago, despite a damning report by the public protector suggesting he had acted dishonestly and irregularly, particularly for lying about his matric certificate and raising top executives’ salaries.
The DA later succeeded in a high court bid in the Western Cape to review the decision to keep Motsoeneng on, and last month, the SABC was denied leave to appeal the court’s ruling.
Matthews’s about-turn comes just days after three top SABC journalists were placed on suspension for objecting to a decision not to report on a protest on censorship last week.
Last week, the Right2Know campaign led protests against SABC management in Durban, Cape Town and Joburg, condemning the ban on protest coverage and editorial policies implemented last month, which allowed Motsoeneng the final say on editorial decisions.
The three top SABC journalists - economics editor Thandeka Gqubule, RSG executive producer Foeta Krige and senior journalist Suna Venter - were suspended after questioning a decision not to cover the protest.
This prompted other employees at the broadcaster to protest over the suspensions on social media at the weekend.
On Facebook, a number of employees - current and former - had replaced images of themselves with black tape over their mouths.
The SA National Editors’ Forum(Sanef) said on Friday it was shocked by the suspensions.
“Sanef urges the SABC to immediately lift the suspensions of these journalists. Journalists in a constitutional democracy have a right to express themselves freely.
“Sanef will write to the SABC to insist that it must respect the rights to freedom of thought and expression of journalists,” it said in a statement.
On Monday, Sanef lauded Matthews’s decision. “That he feels there is a corrosive atmosphere that he, as the chief executive, cannot do anything about speaks volumes about corporate governance within the SABC. The SABC is an asset of the South African public as a whole, and that it is being turned into a state broadcaster that only serves the interests of the ruling party is wrong and must be condemned,” it said.