16 April 1993
This evening, 16th April 1993, the SABC's Sotho Radio News programme ran a story to the effect that after a meeeting of its leading bodies today, there are tensions in the ANC which could lead to a split in the movement.
During the course of today, 16th April 1993,inquiries regarding such tensions were received at the ANC's Department of Information and Publicity. SABC journalists, like other inquirers, were clearly told that there was no truth in these reports.
At 15.00 hours Friday, 16th April, a Press Conference was held at 51 Plein Street, the ANC's Head Office. SABC TV personnel and other journalists were present. In the event that our earlier clarifications had been inadequate they had an opportunity to probe further. None of the SABC's journalists availed themselves of this opportunity.
SABC Radio reports are in absolute bad faith.The purposes for which they are intended are clearly mischievous and of a partisan political character. It is particularly striking that this outrageous untruth is being circulated only in the African language programmes. These are methods that bear the hallmark of COMOPS and other disinformation services working on behalf of the regime's security forces.
If the Radio Services SABC have indeed been assigned the role of disseminating lies that originate in the COMOPS structures of the regime, let the South African public be told.
This disgraceful incident merely underlines the urgency of overhauling the entire SABC to make it an accountable public asset and not the mouthpiece of the National Party regime.
The ANC regards the role played by the SABC Radio Services in a serious light and demands an immediate retraction of these scurrilous lies and a full apology from the SABC management.
Issued by: The Department of Information and Publicity.
P.O. Box 61884,
Marshalltown 2107,
Johannesburg.