Questions & Replies: Communications

We envisage adopting the DoC Language Policy within the extended official deadline of May 2015.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2828

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr KS Mubu (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) What is the status of Channel Africa Radio which broadcasts in Silozi, Chinyanja, Kiswahili, French, Portuguese and English to the rest of Africa, (b) are there plans to include other languages for broadcasting, (c) how many persons are currently employed by the specified radio station, (d) what is the budget for the specified radio station for the 2014-15 financial year and (e) are there plans to increase the budget? NW3470E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a) Channel Africa is still fully operational.

b) No. The station cannot afford this kind of expansion due to its budgetary constraints.

(c) As at February 2014, the station had 65 employees. 5 positions are vacant.

(d) The station's budget for 2014/15 Financial Year is R47 million.

(e) None in the short term as the R1 million baseline allocation cut effected by National Treasury in February remains until 2015 Financial Year.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2812

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr GG Hill-Lewis (DA) to ask Minister of Communications

Did (a) her department and/or (b) any entities reporting to it owe money to any Gauteng municipalities at the end of the 2013-14 financial year; if so, in respect of each specified municipality (i) what is the name of the municipality, (ii) what was the total amount owed, (iii) what was the nature of the debt, (iv) for how long has the debt been outstanding and (v) what plans are in place to recover the debt owed to each specified municipality by (aa) her department and/or (bb) any entities reporting to it? NW3400E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

All invoices due and payable to municipalities by the Department of Communications and its entities were settled.

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2790

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr Y Cassim (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether she received an invitation to the wedding of Vega Gupta and Aakash Jahajgarhia; if so,

(2) Whether she attended any of the wedding festivities between 30 April and 3 May 2013; if so,

(3) Whether she stayed overnight at the venue; if so, (a) what accommodation did she use, (b) who paid for the said accommodation, (c) what mode of transport did she use to attend the wedding festivities and (d) who paid for the travel costs? NW3444E

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

REPLY:

(1) No

(2) Not applicable

(3) Not applicable

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2689

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms MR Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

(a) How many Afrikaans (i) children and (ii) youth television programmes were produced by the SA Broadcasting Corporation in the (aa) 2009, (bb) 2010, (cc) 2011, (dd) 2012 and (ee) 2013 calendar years and (b) what are the names of each of these programmes? NW3336E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

The table below provides details of the programs per calendar year:

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2688

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr C Mackenzie (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) What percentage of the SA Broadcasting Corporation's Afrikaans programmes is rebroadcast or rerun of old programmes and (b) what is the name of each show that is a rebroadcast?NW3335E

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

REPLY:

(a) 35.8 %

(b) 7 de Laan, Konings and Torings

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2685

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr J J McGluwa (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

What percentage of the television broadcast of the SA Broadcasting Corporation is in (a) Afrikaans, (b) English, (c) isiZulu, (d) isiXhosa and (e) the rest of the languages collectively?NW3332E

REPLY

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

SABC 1

SABC 2

SABC 3

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2684

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

2684. Mr J McGluwa (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) (a) Who did the printing of the Department of Communications 2014/15 - 2018/19, (b) how many copies were printed and (c) what was the total cost;

(2) Was the printing of the Strategic Plan put out on tender; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details of the tender? NW3331E

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

REPLY:

(1) (a) Government Printing Works

(b) 60 copies

(c) R6000

(2) The tender process was not used as the cost was under R30 000.

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2642

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms S P Kopane (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

What (a) projects has her department implemented to (i) promote and (ii) expand community media since the start January 2010 and (b) are the details of each of these projects?NW3286E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

The below is the total ad spend that the Department of Communications through its media buying unit placed advertising on community media to support their financial viability .

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2640

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms S P Kopane (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) Which posts are currently vacant within her department, (b) how long has each of these posts been vacant, (c) what is the reason for each of these vacancies and (d) how is she expediting the process to fill the funded vacancies?NW3284E

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

REPLY:

(a) The Department of Communications has 41 vacant posts.

(b) Annexure A highlights how long each post has been vacant for.

(c) Annexure A highlights the reasons for each of these vacancies.

(d) There is a moratorium on all funded vacancies due to the restructuring of the department.

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2637

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms V van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

Does (a) her department and (b) each of the entities reporting to her have existing Disaster Recovery Plans (DRPs); if not, (i) why not and (ii) when will (aa) her department and (bb) each of the entities reporting to her have DRPs; if so, what are the details of each of these plans respectively? NW3281E

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

REPLY:

(a) Yes, the Department of Communications has a Disaster Recovery Plan.

(b) Yes, all entities have Disaster Recovery Plans.

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2575

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

M Mr M G P Lekota (Cope) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether she has taken appropriate disciplinary and remedial action against the financial and performance management team of her department for (a) failing to monitor compliance with applicable laws within the administration, (b) failing to adhere to the requirements of (i) the Public Finance Management Act, Act 1 of 1999, (ii) Treasury Regulations and (iii) Public Service Regulations, (c) not fully implementing proper procurement procedures, (d) failing to pay suppliers within 30 days and (e) not exercising oversight responsibility within the administration; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(2) Whether she will make a statement on why the serious lack of financial control within her department is continuing year after year considering the serious fiscal constraints our country is experiencing?NW3212E

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

REPLY:

(1)

(a) The Department of Communications has a system of internal control to ensure that all applicable laws within the administration are adhered to.

(b) The system of internal control is reviewed annually, approved by MANCO and ratified by the Accounting Officer, among others, seeks to ensure that the requirements of the following prescripts are adhered to:

(i) the Public Finance Management Act, Act 1 of 1999,

(ii) Treasury Regulations and

(iii) Public Service Regulations

(c) The system of internal control is so effective that the department has over the past financial years not had irregular expenditure reported in the audit report.

(d) For the current financial year as at 30 November 2014 the department has processed 5813 invoices. Only four (4) of which were processed outside the regulated 30 days. This represents a 99.98% compliance rate. The following are the reasons for the deviation.

· Two of the invoices received from the service providers were incorrect. The department had to investigate the invoices before they were paid.

· Two of the other invoices were hanging on the system and therefore did not disburse on time. Processing again on system hanging payment puts a department at a risk of double payment.

(2) There is no need for a statement as there is financial control within the department.

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2469

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr D America (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

How many work days has her department lost to (a) sick leave and (b) strike action in the (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14 financial years? NW3063E

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

REPLY:

(a) The Department of Communications lost the below stated workdays during the three financial years indicated.

(i) 2668 sick leave days were lost during the 2011 /2012 financial year.

(ii) 2664 sick leave days were lost during the 2012 /2013 financial year.

(iii) 3132 sick leave days were lost during the 2013 /2014 financial year.

(b) The Department of Communications did not lose any workdays as a result of strike actions during the three financial years indicated above.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2288

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

Do any of the Executive Members of the SABC Board utilise company cars; if so, (a) what is the name of each member; (b) what is the (i) make, (ii) model, and (iii) year of the vehicle in each case; and (c) is a driver supplied in each case? NW2841E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

The executive members of the SABC Board (GCEO, COO and CFO) do not utilise company cars. They receive fixed travel allowances as part of their remuneration package. The executive directors do, however, have access to the SABC employed drivers, should the need arise.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2184

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms. V van Dyk (DA) to asks of the Minister of Communications

With regards to all bonuses and commissions earned by SABC Group Executive Mr. A Heunis in the 2013-14 financial year; (a) what was the reason for each (i) bonus or (ii) commission, (b) what was the amount paid in respect of each bonus or (ii) commission; and (c) what were the specific details of each? NW2727E ___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a)(i) Not applicable

(ii) Mr. A Heunis in his capacity as Group Executive: Commercial Enterprises earned commission in line with the SABC Sales Commission Scheme.

(b)(i) Nil

(ii) R 1,493,000 as reflected in the 2013/14 Annual report.

(c) Commission is paid in lieu of the sale of airtime. All sales staff within the SABC participates in the Sales Commission Scheme.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2183

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms MR Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

How much of the SABC's advertising revenue for (a) television and (b) radio was accounted for by (i) government advertising and (ii) commercial advertising in the (aa) 2013-14, (bb) 2012-13 and (cc) 2011-12 financial years? NW2726E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a) Television

(i) Government - 1% of Nett Classic advertising revenue - average over the 3 years.

(ii) Commercial Advertising - 99% of Nett Classic advertising revenue - average over the 3 years.

(b) Radio

(i) Government - 14% of Nett Classic advertising revenue - average over the 3 years .

(ii) Commercial Advertising - 86% of Nett Classic advertising Revenue - average over the 3 years.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2182

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms V Van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

1. Has a memorandum of Understanding been signed between the Minister of Communications and the Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services, as indicated by an official from the Department of Public Service and Administration in the Communications Portfolio Committee on 19 August 2014; if so, will the Minister make it publicly available; if not, will such a Memorandum of Understanding be signed in the future? NW2725E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

No Memorandum of Understanding has been entered into between the Minister of Communications and the Minister Telecommunications and Postal Services. A new proclamation assigning legislation to the departments is awaited.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2180

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr GR Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

How much money did the SABC spend on consultants in the last three financial years; (a) what is the name of each consultant; (b) what work was each consultant doing for the SABC; (c) what was the duration of each of their contracts; and (d) what amount was paid to each in consultancy fees in each financial year? NW2723E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

In order to respond to this question accurately, a vast amount of information is required to be analysed and reported on. A response to this question cannot be provided within the timelines provided. We will submit a response as soon as the information is collated.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2179

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms MR Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

What is (a) the full name of each staff member employed in the office of the SABC Board Chairperson, (b) the job title of each, (c) details of the annual salary of each member, and (d) the highest qualification obtained by each? NW2722E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a, c) The matter of remuneration and other personal information of employees other than directors and the Executive Committee of the company is private and confidential between the SABC and the employee.

(b, d) Job Titles and qualifications:

Office Manager – Matric + Courses in Human Resources Management

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2178

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

What is (a) the full name of each staff member employed in the office of the SABC Chief Operations Office, (b) the job title of each, (c) details of the annual salary of each member, and (d) the highest qualification obtained by each? NW2721E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a, c) The matter of remuneration and other personal information of employees other than directors and the Executive Committee of the company are private and confidential between the SABC and the employee.

(b, d) Job Titles and qualifications:

GM: Operations – Master of Business Administration (MBA)

GM: Strategic Projects and Audit matters – CA (SA); ACMA

Personal Assistant: – Matric + Diploma Course

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2041

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr. GR Davis (DA) asks of Minister of Communications

What is the cash value of all leave owned to all SABC staff as at the end of the 2013-14 financial year? NW2508E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

The SABC's leave liability (cash value) at the end of the 2013/14 financial year amounted to R170 million.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2080

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr CD Matsepe (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

1. How many copies of the department's annual report for the financial year (a) 2012/13 and (b) 2013/14 were produced, (i) at what cost and (ii) to who were these reports circulated? NW2547E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a) 2012/13

Total of 2000 were produced.

(i) At a cost of R98 500.00

(ii) Reports were circulated as follows: Portfolio Committee, Ministry, Auditor-General, Library Deposits, Provincial Offices and Management Committee and staff.

(b) 2013/14

Total of 1800 were produced.

i. At a cost of R104 000.00

ii. Reports were circulated as follows: Portfolio Committee, Ministry, Auditor-General, Library Deposits, Provincial Offices and Management Committee and staff.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2040

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

With regards to venues used for 35 (including the interim Board) meetings held in the 2013-14 financial year; (a) what was the name of each of the venues; (b) what was the cost of venue hire in each case; and (c) what was the cost of catering in each case? NW2507E ________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a) Board meetings are convened in the SABC's 28^th Floor Boardroom at Radio Park. The Board Induction on 8 April 2013 was convened in the same Boardroom and the Induction of 12 November 2014 was convened in the Auditorium on K1 Level Radio Park. A Board Strategy Session with the participation of Group EXCO was convened at the Sunnyside Park Hotel on 29 January 2014.

(b) No costs for venue hire were incurred for the meetings convened at the SABC. The all-inclusive cost for the Sunnyside Park Hotel was R13 320 including VAT.

The total cost of catering amounts to R103 065 for the period in question.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2039

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr GR Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

Why have no (a) disciplinary steps or (b) criminal action taken in the last three financial years against SABC employees responsible for (i) making payments without contracts and (ii) failing to follow procurement processes? NW2506E ________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

Due to the dynamic nature of SABC operations, there are instances where the SABC is required to broadcast without a contract in place, however, endeavours are carried out to regularise the agreements after the fact.

The SABC has initiated a project to review and align the SABC Procurement Policy to PFMA requirements in terms of original tax clearance certificate.

Disciplinary and criminal action has been instituted where warranted.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2038

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms V Van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

1. Has a Memorandum of Understanding been signed between the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and the Government Communication & Information System (GCIS); if so, will the Minister make it publicly available; if not, will such a Memorandum of Understanding be signed in the future? NW2505E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

1. No Memorandum of Understanding exists between the Government Communication and Information System and the SABC.

Reply received: December 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 2037

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms V van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) When does she expect the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) to complete its review of its editorial policies and (b) why was the 2009 deadline for the SABC to review its editorial policies missed?NW2504E

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MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

REPLY:

(a) The SABC expects to complete the Editorial Policy review by the end of the first quarter of 2015.

(b) During the 2009-2012 financial period, the SABC suffered from leadership instability and as such did not conduct the review of the Editorial policies. As stability is restored to the Corporation with the current leadership, the review is being addressed and is approaching completion. In future, the SABC leadership is committed to reviewing the policies, with public participation, every two years.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1894

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

With regards to the Report of the SABC Board for the year ended 31 March 2013, wherein the SABC's Chief Operations Officer listed the "Imbumba Trust" as a Directorship; is the Imbumba Trust a subsidiary of the Imbumba Group that does business with the Department of Communication? NW2276E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

No, it is not a subsidiary of the Imbumba Group.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1893

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) What were the total number and (b) the percentage of SABC employees that disclosed their business interest in the last three financial years as required by the SABC's Conflict of Interest Policy? NW2275E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a) 2014-15: 3335

2013-14: 2715

2012-13: Information is not available as it was done manually in previous

fiscal periods.

(b) 2014 – 15: 87%

2013 – 14: 76%

2012 – 13: Information not available as it was done manually in previous fiscal periods.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1892

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

1. Has the Minister undergone any media training since her appointment to Cabinet; if so (a) what is the name of the service provider; (b) what was the cost of the media training and (c) how many sessions has she completed? NW2274E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a) ABN Training Institute

(b) R11 970.00 per session

(c) Two sessions

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1874

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

The Minister announced on 24 June 2014 that a permanent General Chief Executive Officer would be in place at the SABC within three months. Now that the deadline has passed, can the Minister explain (a) what factors have led to the deadline being missed; (b) whether a shortlist of candidates has been compiled; (c) whether interviews have taken place; and (d) when the minister expects an appointment to be made? NW2249E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

(a) The appointment of an executive search company has to be restarted due to the initially preferred company, which is a recognised and reputable company, not being able to comply with the SABC's requirements in respect of its procurement policy to provide a valid and original tax clearance certificate.

(b) The entire recruitment process as outlined in the Memorandum of Incorporation of the SABC was followed, which includes the shortlisting of candidates.

(c) The entire recruitment process as outlined in the Memorandum of Incorporation of the SABC was followed, which includes the interviewing of candidates.

(d) The list of preferred candidates was submitted for Minister's consideration and approval on the 10 October 2014 and their credentials are being scrutinised prior to ministerial approval. Such appointments will be made in due course on conclusion of the vetting process.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1827

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr GR Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

1. Can the Minister confirm that she plans to reduce the number of SABC Board Members; if so, on what grounds? NW2200E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

Yes, there are plans to reduce the number of SABC Board members. This will be done through the introduction of amendments to the Broadcasting Act no 4 of 1999. The reduction of the Board will facilitate efficiency in decision-making and the effective functioning of the Board.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NO: 1792

PUBLICATION DATE: 26 SEPTEMBER

1792. MR G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communication

Can she confirm that she is planning to remove the National Assembly's powers to appoint and remove SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) board members and vest that power in the Office of the Minister of Communications; if so, (a) when will this amending legislation be introduced in Parliament and (b) what measures will she propose to safeguard the independence of the SABC Board? NW2164E

Reply

The Minister of Communications:

The Minister is reviewing the entire legislation under her administration including the Broadcasting Act, Minister will introduce the amendments to Parliament as soon as all protocols have been observed.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1662

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

___________________________________________________________

Ms V van Wyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

Since the 24-hour news channel that has been run by the SA Broadcasting Corporation SABC in partnership with Multichoice went on live in November 2013, (a) what has been the average viewership, (b) what amount of advertising has been generated by the channel and (c) has any of its advertising been channelled from its free air SABC channels to the DSTV channel? NW2023E

REPLY

Minister of Communications

Since the 24-hour news channel that has been run by the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) in partnership with Multichoice went live in November 2013;

(a) The average viewership is 6000 per hour

(b) Revenue since inception to date amounted to R4,9 million

(c) No

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1649

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 19 SEPTEMBER 2014

1649. Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

(a) What are the full names of all officials employed in her Ministry and (b) for each official, (i) what is the job title, (ii) what are the details of the annual salary and (iii) what is the highest qualification obtained?

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1648

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 19 SEPTEMBER 2014

1648: Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) How many films and publications have been classified "XX" by the Film and Publications Board in the (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11, (iii) 2011-12, (iv) 2012-13 and (v) 2013-14 financial years, (b) what is the title of each (i)film and (ii) publication and what was the reason for the "XX"classification in each case?

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATION

(a) Twelve (12)

(i) Six (6)

(ii) Two (2)

(iii) Two (2)

(iv) Two (2)

(b)

(i)

(ii) Publications – No record for publication

© Please be informed that information for XX classification is available from the files which are currently at Document Warehouse, if needed can be requested and be provided.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1643

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS: SEPTEMBER 2014

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1643. Ms L V James (DA) to ask the Minister in Communications:

(a) Which posts in her department are vacant in the (i) highly skilled, (ii) highly skilled supervision and (iii) senior and top management levels and (b) in each case, what has been the duration of the vacancy? NW2004E

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

(a) (i) Highly skilled vacant posts and duration of the vacancy

(ii) Highly skilled supervision vacant posts and duration of the vacancy

(iii) Senior and top management vacant posts and duration of the vacancy

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1570

DATE OF PUBLICATION: SEPTEMBER 2014

1570. Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

(1) With reference to her reply to question 845 on 2 September 2014, what categories of expenses are covered by the expense allowance received by the executive board members?

(2) What amount of money spent by each executive board member on each of the categories of expenses allowances?

(3) Why was the chief acting operating officer's expenses allowance increased from R650 000, 00 in the 2012-13 financial year to R 897 000, 00 in the 2013-14 financial year;

(4) Whether the expenses allowances are (a) set amounts per month or (b) based on system where expenses are claimed back;

(5) Whether any income tax paid by the executive board members on income or benefits received through expenses allowances; if not why not; if so how much income tax was paid in each case in the 2013-14 financial year? NW1940E

REPLY

Minister of Communications

(1) Expense allowances may include the following:

- Housing allowance

- Car allowance

- Cell phone allowance

- Other cash allowance

- Entertainment allowance

- Subsistence allowance

- Benefit replacement allowance

- Insurance allowance, acting allowance

- Special allowance

2. The allowance are fixed allowances and form part of the total cost to company packages. It is not based on actual expenditure claims, expect for subsistence allowances.

3. It was due to acting allowances claimed retrospectively where he did not receive any acting allowance for (+- 16 months' worth of acting allowance)

4. (a) Yes

(b) Only in the case of subsistence allowances.

5. All expenses allowances are fully taxed according the income tax guidelines of SARS, the only allowance that is not taxed is the subsistence allowance. The executive board members are taxed on their full taxable income including all expense allowances.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1521

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS: SEPTEMBER 2014

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1521. Ms T Stander (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

Whether (a) her department and/or (b) any entities reporting to her sponsored political party (i) advertisements, (ii) events and/or (iii) paraphernalia in the (aa) 2011-12, (bb) 2012-13 and (cc) 2013-14 financial years; if so, (aaa) for which political party and (bbb) what was the monetary value of the sponsorship in each case? NW1891E

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

The Government Communication and Information System did not sponsor any political party (i) advertisements, (ii) events and/or (iii) paraphernalia in the (aa) 2011-12, (bb) 2012-13 and (cc) 2013-14 financial years.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1491

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS: SEPTEMBER 2014

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1491. Dr M J Figg (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

What is the quantum of funds spent by her department on all advertising for each financial year between 1 April 2010 up to the latest specified date for which information is available? NW1857E

REPLY:

In the period 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011, the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) did not place any advertising.

In the period 1 April 2011 to 30 September 2014, the GCIS spent R51 932 246 on advertising to popularise various government programmes including the State of the Nations Addresses, National Orders events, Inauguration 2014 and Presidential Siyahlola visits. Through the government media bulk buying initiative, R4 011 570 was saved for the department through negotiated discounts.

The annual advertising breakdown is detailed below:

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1458

DATE OF Mr EJ Marais (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

1. Which travel agents have the department used between 1 April 2012 and the latest specified date for which information is available

2. What is the total quantum of funds spent with each of these travel agents in the specific period above? NW1824E

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REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

Travel agents used and funds spent for 2012/13 and 2013/14 are as follows:

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1422

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

With regards to the statement made by the minister during a portfolio committee meeting on 2 September 2014, that an inquiry into the fake sign language interpreter at Nelson Mandela's memorial service at FNB Stadium, was being conducted by an inter-ministerial committee on state funerals; (a) what are the terms of the reference of the inquiry; b) which minister sit on the inter-ministerial committee and (c) when will the inter-ministerial committee complete its inquiry into the fake sign language interpreter? NW1787E

___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

The Inter Ministerial Committee (IMC) on the State Funerals in the outgoing administration reviewed and deliberated on this as part of its close out assessment. The IMC concluded that the Department of Arts and Culture will be charged with all arrangements for future events including the procurement of all translators.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1421

DATE OF PUBLICATION: SEPTEMBER 2014

____________________________________________________________

1421. Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

How many (i) Information for Empowerment Dialogues have taken place since her announcement on 24 June 2014 and (ii) persons have attended these dialogues and (b) what was these dialogues? NW1786E

REPLY

Minister of Communications

No, Information for Empowerment Dialogues have taken place yet.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1385

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 12 SEPTMBER 2014

1385: Mrs M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

(1) Has the spectrum assigned to a certain company (name furnished ) been made available to other (a) companies or (b) entities seeking assignments; if not, why not;

(2) (a) what spectrum is used by the specified company, (b) how long has it used this spectrum, (c) how much does it owe the Independent Communication Authority of South Africa (ICASA), (d) how long has the money been outstanding and € what steps are being taken by ICASA to secure payment? NW1750E

REPLY

Minister of Communications

1. The radio frequency spectrum that was intended to be assigned to Kaltrade (PTY) LTD has not been made available to any other entity for the simple reason that there is sufficient spectrum in the spectrum bands in which Kaltrade was intended to be licensed to accommodate demands of other licensees.

2. (a) Kaltrade applied for licenses in the 2 and 6 GHz bands in order to provide point to point backhaul links to their clients in the country. The applications were approved in 2012 but the licenses were never issued due to the fact that Kaltrade did not pay the required licenses fees to acquire the licenses.

(b) The spectrum licenses referred to in 2(a) have not been issued to Kaltrade. Therefore, Kaltrade is not authorised to use any spectrum at the moment.

(c) Kaltrade does not owe any radio frequency spectrum licenses fees to the Authority as it was never assigned any spectrum licence/s.

(d) See response 2 (b) above

(e) The matter is currently being investigated by the Authority's regional office to ascertain whether Kaltrade is legally operating the radio frequency spectrum they applied for in 2012

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1384

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 12 SEPTEMBER 2014

1384: Mrs M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

1(a) What amount is owed to the Information Communications authority of South Africa by (i) departments at all spheres of government and (ii) municipalities and (b) of these, (i) please name those in arrears for more than 60 days, (ii) state how much each owes, (iii) how long has the money been outstanding and (iv) what steps are being taken to secure payment;

(2) Whether any have lost their spectrum allocation because of non-payment of fees? NW 1749E

Reply

Minister of Communications

(1) The details of municipalities and government entities which owe radio frequency spectrum licence fees to ICASA are detailed in the attached spreadsheet. The spreadsheet further breaks down the entities according to the number of days they are in arrears. The biggest amounts owed by municipalities and other government departments range from a minimum of R120 to R325 000, 00. ICASA is engaging the relevant government departments in order to ensure that they comply with applicable regulatory requirements in relation to their spectrum licences.

(2) None of these entities has at this stage lost their spectrum assignments. This is largely due to the fact that most of them provide essential public/national services – including ensuring the country's national security and the safety of citizenry. As such it would irresponsible (and probably unlawful) for ICASA to tamper with/withdraw their access to spectrum. These measures include liaising with the Executive Authority to issue a directive instructing all Government Departments and municipalities that "owe" spectrum fees, to pay the "outstanding fees" by a certain date and to remedy any internal inefficiencies that results in non-payment of fees. In addition to these measures, ICASA is also reviewing and amending the Radio Frequency Spectrum Regulations in order to effectively deal with non-payment of spectrum fess (including imposition of penalties for non-compliance)

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1356

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr MQ Ndlozi (EFF) to ask the Minister of Communications:

a) In what way will your department, as a new department, transform the communication arm of government, what will be its role, what are its limits and scope? NW1718E

___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

a) The DOC derives its mandate from the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.

Its mandate is to develop overarching communications policy and strategy, information dissemination and publicity as well as the branding of the country abroad thereby promoting an informed citizenry and also assist the country to promote investments, economic growth and job creation.

This mandate will be fulfilled through:

· Developing and reviewing communications policies and legislation that ensure the growth and development of the communications sector;

· Improving government communications system that informs and disseminate information to the public as well as marketing the country abroad;

· Strengthening the capacity of the Department and that of its state-owned companies to effectively deliver on their mandates; and

· Broadening the participation in the communications sector to promote economic development and transformation.

The current GCIS structure is the start-up organisational structure of the Department. The new structure must in the main support the new mandate of the Department by:

· Optimising and synchronise execution of activities,

· Ensuring that related functions, processes and activities, which attempt to achieve the same results, are grouped together in the different business units.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1355

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr MQ Ndlozi (EFF) to ask the Minister of Communications:

Is the distribution of Set-top boxes located in your Ministry or not and if yes, please speak to how you will be purchasing and distributing them in the light of government's commitment to local beneficiation. NW1717E

___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

The Scheme for Ownership Support (SOS) subsidy framework as approved by cabinet makes provision for the SA Post Office and USAASA to work together in the distribution of STB's. The department has the responsibility to oversee that STB's are made available to all SA TV households as provided for in the Digital Migration Policy. The broadcasting Digital Migration Policy makes provision for the sourcing of STB's from Local Manufacturers. Thus, ensuring the growth and development of the domestic electronics industry.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1311

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Ms M Shinn to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) What are the (i) cost and (ii) payment schedule details of the settlement ICASA has reached with Wireless Business Solutions (WBS) and (b) for what reasons has WBS been allowed to continue to use its broadcasting spectrum if there are still monies owing? NW1607E

___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

a) WBS paid the disputed licence fees in the amount R 76, 516, 300.00 and it is compliant with its licence conditions.

b) The court interdicted ICASA from taking further action against WBS, and ruled that the use by WBS of the disputed licences remained subject to the terms and conditions imposed under the existing, alternatively former, licences granted to WBS. WBS was therefore authorised to operate radio frequency spectrum and was considered to be a licensee as defined in section 1 of the Electronic Communications Act 13 of 2000 ("ECA'), for the period 5 April 2013 until 29 April 2014.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1295

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Dr MJ Cardo to ask the Minister of Communications:

1. With regards to the "Social Cohesion Index" referred to in Appendix 14 of the Medium Term Strategic Framework 2014-2019, (a) who is responsible for compiling the index and (b) how is "social cohesion" (i) defined and (ii) measured;

2. With regards to the "Active Citizenship index" referred to in Appendix 14 of the Medium Term Strategic Framework 2014-2019, (a) who is responsible for compiling the index and (b) how is "active citizenship" (i) defined and (ii) measured? NW1590E

___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

1. The mandate for collecting data for measurement of indicators of the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) falls under the purview of the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation.

2. The mandate for collecting data for measurement of indicators of the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) falls under the purview of the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION NO : 1220

DATE: JULY

1220. Mr W M Madisha (COPE) to ask the Minister of Communications

(1) Whether she had solicited legal advice from the state law advisors with regard to constitutional grounds on which she proceeded to confirm the appointment of a certain to person (name furnished) contrary to the findings and recommendations of the Public Protector; if so, what are the relevant details of the constitutional authority; if not,

Whether she will make a full statement on how she intends to correct the matter in order to fully compliant with the Constitution? NW1458

Reply

Minister of Communications

The matter of the SABC's COO appointment is before the court and Minister will await the court decisions

Reply received: September 2014

QUESTION NO: 1195

DATE OF PUBLICATION

1195. Ms V van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether (a) she and (b) the Deputy Minister has each employed a ministerial special advisor; if so,

(2) (a) what is the name of the special advisor, (b) when was the advisor appointed, (c) what are the duties of the advisor, (d) at what post level was the appointment made, (e) what is the salary level of the advisor, (f) what is the duration of the employment contract entered into with the advisor and (g) why was it necessary to appoint the advisor? NW1433E

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

Yes,

2. (b) Mr DL Manthsa; (Deputy Minnister) Not applicable August 2014

(c) The Appointment of special advisors to executive authorities is regulated by section 12A of the Public Service Act, 1994 and the dispensation approved by the national Cabinet in terms of section 12A. Mr Mantsha acts in an advisory capacity and has been appointed in terms of the Public Service Act (section 12 (1):

- To advise the Executive Authority on the exercise or performance of the Executive Authority's powers and duties

- To advise the Executing Authority on the development of policy that will promote the relevant department's objective; or

- To perform such other tasks as may be appropriate in respect of the Executive authority's power and duties

(d) The Ministerial Handbook together with Cabinet approved dispensation provides guidelines for the determination of the salary level of the Special Advisors. It should be indicated that the salary scales of individual is an employee and employer confidential agreement. The information is however accessible through the Audit process, the salary of the Advisor is available for audit purpose.

(e) The duration of the contract has been agreed upon between the Special Advisor and the Executive Authority. Regardless of the contract period, the contract will terminate at the end of the month following the month that the Executive Authority vacates office for any reason.

(f) Contract is for a period of five years

(g) As refer to (answer a)

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 1031

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

1. What was the total government advertising budget for each month between January 2013 and July 2014

2. In the past financial year, how much did government spend on advertising in the following categories of media (a) print, (b) radio, (c) television, (d) online and (e) outdoor;

3. What is the breakdown of government advertising in terms of (a) name of and (b) amount spent on each media category (i) publication, (ii) radio station, (iii) television station, (iv) website and (v) billboards location (province)? NW1184E

___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

1. The Department of Communications (DOC) does not account for the total

advertising budget of government. The DOC receives transfers of funds from individual departments and institutions who use the media buying services of the DOC. Therefore the DOC can only account for the budget which was transferred to it for advertising services by individual departments and institutions. The total budget that the DOC managed on behalf of other departments for advertising for each month between January 2013 and July 2014 is R380 961 416.13 (see below table for the monthly breakdown)

2. The Department of Communications (DOC) does not have the totality of the

budget by departments, the budget can be requested from individual

departments. The DOC has spent a total of R227 115 153.10 on behalf of

other departments and institutions, broken down per advertising platform as

follows in the 2013/14 financial year

a) Print – R90 731 346.96

b) Radio – R54 962 252.09

c) Television – R34 435 177.76

d) Online – R3 063 231.50

e) Outdoor – R41 055 660.47

3. The Department of Communications has spent the above funds through

various suppliers.

(a) Print publications (refer to page 1 – 5)

(b) Radio Stations (refer to page 6 – 8)

(c) Tv Stations (refer to page 9)

(d) Website (refer to page 10)

(e) Billboards (refer to page 11)

Reply received: September 2014

The SABC has not considered approaching the Ministry of Communications for such amendment to the Broadcasting ACT.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 968

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

With reference to question number 595 (date of publication 17 July 2014);

(a) What is the name of the service provider contracted to develop a curriculum for the qualification of government communicators, (b) when was the tender awarded for this contract and (c) how many other service providers submitted bids to win this tender? NW1118E

________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

a) Business Enterprises: University of Pretoria

b) 11 March 2013

c) Four services providers submitted bids.

Reply received: October 2014

QUESTION 905 /2014

FOR WRITTEN REPLY

Date of publication on internal question paper: 01 August 2014

Internal question paper no: 07

905. Ms S P Kopane (DA) to ask the Minister of Social Development:

(1) Whether she can provide a copy of the report, with regard to the awarding of the tender to Cash Paymaster Services (CPS), that was compiled by the Independent Process Monitor (IPM) on the bid evaluation committee (BEC) and the bid adjudication committee (BAC); if not, why not;

(2) who (a) served on the IPM, (b) what are their qualifications and (c) how were they appointed onto the IPM? NW996E

Reply:

1 Yes (Attached IPM Report)

2 (a) Leslie Mkhabela

(b) B. Juris. & LLB degree

(c) The appointment of all members and structures was done in line with SASSA

processes.

Reply received: September 2014

QUESTION NO 846

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 18 JULY 2014

846: Ms Van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

1. Why did the SA Broadcasting Corporation (a)

indicate that moving the Afrikaans news bulletins from SABC 2 to SABC 3 was only a temporary arrangement until the end of 2014 Fifa World Cup tournament;

and (b) run on air promotions informing viewers that the Afrikaans news bulletin would be moving back to SABC 2 on 14 July, when this was not the case;

Reply:

Minister of Communications

(a) There were two pieces of communication regarding two sets of schedule changes that occurred in the period leading up to the World Cup on the 12^th June and the second period starting on the 14^th July with the introduction of new schedules across the TV network, During both periods we had different looking schedules the first impacted by FIFA World Cup and the other as part of our planned changes for the fiscal. These were communicated as two different messages.

(b) No on –air promotions informing viewers that the Afrikaans news bulletins would be moving back to SABC 2 on 14 July were carried out

2. What of television Households (a) are and (b) will be affected by this permanent move? NW934E

Reply:

Minister of Communications

(a) It is not possible to provide accurate amount of households affected by this move as some households in these areas obtain SABC coverage via Multichoice satellite decoders. Total television households in South Africa are approximately 13,174,000 as per the latest amps data. The largest area affected by the move is the Northern Cape Province and this accounts for 3% of total television households

(b) With the roll out of DTT and DHT solutions, no households will be affected by this move as coverage will be uniform across the country.

Reply received: September 2014

QUESTION NO 845

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

(1) (a) What amount has been paid to staff members at the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) in the bonuses in the 2014-15 financial year

(b) Were performance assessments concluded and (c) did each staff member at the SABC receive a bonus;

(2) What amount has been paid to the (a) acting chief officer, (b) acting chief financial officer and (c) acting chief operations officer at the SABC in respect of (i) salaries and (ii) bonuses for the past three financial years respectively? NW932 E

1. A total of R 65,762, 653 was paid to staff in July 2014 following protracted wage negotiations. Part of the wage negotiated settlement included a once-off, exgratia payments to employees. Management also received a once off payment in order to settle wage disputes arising from previous years inadequate salary increases due to austerity measures and as appreciation for various achievements, including the early settlement of the government guarantee, being on air all the time and the seamless broadcasting of major events.

(a) Individual performance assessments were not done as it arose from wage disputes as described above. The payment was not based on individual performance, but the overall performance of the SABC was taken into consideration.

(b) Qualifying staff members across all salary scales received a once-off payment. The qualifications included that staff had to be in service on payment date (July 2014) and should have joined the SABC before or during the previous fiscal in order to qualify for a full or pro-rated payment.

2.

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 830

DATE OF PUBLICATION

Dr P.W A Mulder (FF Plus) to ask the Minister of Communications

(1) What are the reasons for shifting the Afrikaans news bulletin from SABC to SABC 3 at 19:30

Reply:

The rationale was to create a seamless viewing experience to ensure that we address the loss of total audience on SABC 2 and 3 which have been in increasing other the years.

(2) What brought on the research into the removal of the Afrikaans news bulletin from SABC 2, (b) what did the research costs amount to and (c) what were findings for the research;

Reply:

(a) Research is a key part of assessing the performance of the business and how we need to respond to constant viewing trend in the market

(b) The research cost R979,000 excluding VAT

(c) The findings were in brief that SABC 2 has been losing share of the Afrikaans viewer in the Nuus and the drama slot due to gaps in complementary scheduling across SABC platforms and more broadly both SABC 2 and 3 have been losing market share over a period off more than five years

(3). What does the annual revenue from advertising amount to and will it amount to for the time slots (a) 18:00 to 18:30 and (b) 18:30 to 19:00 respectively for the period (i) 12 June 2013 to 11 June 2014 and (ii)12 June 2014 to 11 June 2015

Reply:

(a) (i)

SABC 2 AMOUNT SABC 3 AMOUNT

18:00-18:30 71 329 838 18:00-18:30 97 955 910

(a)(i) The figures in the table below include all advertisement bookings to 30 September 2014. At this stage, a reliable projection to June 2015 cannot be provided as we have yet to see the impact of the change on the advertising market.

(ii) 12 June 2014-30 September 2014

SABC 2 AMOUNT SABC 3 AMOUNT

18:00-18:30 18 580 616 18:00-18:30 42 160 520

(4) Whether the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has compared a language map of South Africa with the broadcasting footprint of SABC 3 from which it is clear that this new shift will deprive Afrikaans speakers in virtually the whole of the Northern Cape, the Eastern Free State, the Eastern Cape and large parts of the Western Cape of the Afrikaans news bulletin: if not why, why not: If so, a) when was such a step taken and b) why did not serve as reason to prevent the shifting of the Afrikaans news bulletin away from the SABC 2?

REPLY

The move mainly affects Afrikaans views in parts of the Northern Cape that constitutes a maximum three (3) % of total viewership. The SABC used research information from census 2011 and further analytic data from SAARF in terms of the Provincial and language distribution.

a) The television channel strategy was approved in December 2013, and the move was implemented after the FIFA soccer world cup in July 2014

b) The decision after assessing total available viewership, amongst other considerations. Research also indicates that the bulk of Afrikaans are found in the Western Cape and Gauteng Provinces. The impact of the changes are temporary in nature as the introduction of the digital broadcast technologies will help in addressing these challenges for all the sectors of the population, regardless of geographic location

Reply received: August 2014

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 769

Mrs M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) How many (i) judgments and (ii) court orders were made against her department in the (aa) 2010-11, (bb) 2011-12, (cc) 2012-13 and (dd) 2013-14 financial years and (b) in each case, (i) how many of these (aa) were implemented and (bb) await implementation by her department and (ii) what was the nature of the (aa) judgment and/or (bb) court order? NW856E

REPLY

There were no formal judgments made against GCIS.

Reply received: September 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 716

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 25 JULY 2014

716:Mr. M S Seshoka (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

Whether the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has plans to reduce lice (a) radio and (b) television coverage of matches involving the senior national (i) cricket, (ii) football and rugby teams for the (aa) 2014-15, (bb) 2015-16 and (cc) 2016-17 financial years; if so, what are the relevant details;

Reply:

Minister of Communications:

(a) Radio

(i)(aa) Cricket 2014-15, for the current fiscal period, the SABC is testing the replacement of live ball-by-ball commentary of test cricket with highlights and updates every 30 minutes. Limited overs cricket is not affected by this pilot project

At this point in time, SABC has no plans to reduce coverage, also at this point in time, some of these rights have not been acquired. As such, coverage would be dependent on the sport rights negotiations

(i)(bb) Cricket 2015-16-None

(i)(cc) Cricket 2016-17-None

(ii)(aa) Football 2014-15-None

(ii)(bb) Football 2015-16- None

(ii)(cc) Football 2016-17-None

(iii)(aa) Rugby 2014-15-None

(iii)(bb) Rugby 2015-16-None

(iii)(cc) Rugby 2016-17-None

(b) Television – At this point in time, SABC has no plans to reduce coverage, also, at this point in time some of these rights have not been acquired. As such coverage would be dependent on the spot rights negotiations.

(i)(aa) Cricket 2014-15-None

(i)(bb) Cricket 2015-16-None

(i)(cc) Cricket 2016-17-None

(ii)(aa) Football 2014-15-None

(ii)(bb) Football 2015-16-None

(ii)(cc) Football 2016-17-None

(iii)(aa) Rugby 2014-16-None

(iii)(bb) Rugby 2015-16-None

(iii)(cc) Rugby 2016-17-None

2. Whether she or her department has discussed the SABC's plans to reduce live coverage of such official matches with the Minister of Sports and Recreations; if not when does she intend to do so? NW800E

Reply:

Minister of Communications

As there are no tangible plans to reduce live coverage, no such discussions have been held with the Minister of Sports and Recreations

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION 703 FOR WRITTEN REPLY

OUESTION NUMBER

PUBLICATION: 25 JULY 703

Ms Van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communication

(1) With regard to recent comments made by a certain person (details furnished) that the decision to move Afrikaans programming from SABC 2 to SABC was based on research, (a) when was this research (i) undertaken and (ii) completed and (b) who (i) undertook the research and (ii) compiled the report

(2) Will this research/repot be made available to the Portfolio Committee on Communications; if not, why not; if so, when? NW 787E

Reply

Minister of Communications:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:

(1) The decision was based on research from various sources: the first being regular television audience data from SAARF ( South African Audience Research Foundation); the 2011 Census which details population size and dynamics; as well as media and language data from FutureFact and bespoke research conducted for SABC 3 by Plus94 in 2013.

(2) The research data can be made available at the request of the Portfolio Committee on Communications

(2) The research data can be made available at the request of the Portfolio Committee on Communications

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 702

DATE OF PUBLICATION

Ms V Van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) With regard to her department's purported move of Afrikaans programming from SABC 2 to SABC 3, (a) what programmes will move to SABC 3 and (b) when will the proposed move take place?

REPLY:

Minister of Communications:

(1) (a) Nuus, Afrikaans drama, 50/50 and Fokus

(b) The move took place on 14 July 2014

What time will the programmes appear on SABC 3;

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

Fokus is at 20H00 on Sunday; Nuus is at 19H30; 50/50 at 17h30 on Sunday and Afrikaans drama moves to 20h30 from October following concerns that 21H30 was too late.

___________________________________________________________________

What programmes will replace the Afrikaans programming on SABC;

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

SABC 2 will introduce local dramas in various languages, locally produced family game shows and local documentary reality programming Monday to Friday. On Sunday in the prime time there will be an introduction of a value based family drama slot.

What is the rationale for moving these programmes?

Reply

Minister of Communications

The rationale was to create a seamless viewing experience to ensure that we address the loss of total audience on SABC 2 which we have been increasing over the years

How does the SA Broadcasting Corporation justify this decision in light of SABC 3's week footprint in the Northern Cape? NW786E

Reply:

Minister of Communications

The move is justified in terms of our long term strategy to improve the viewing experience for Afrikaans viewers. The research indicated that Afrikaans viewers also consume English content, therefore, by moving the Afrikaans bulletins to SABC 3 at 19H30, it has allowed for a larger viewing audience for Isidingo at 19H00 and the English programmes at 20H00 on SABC 3

The Northern Cape compromises of only 2% of the total available television viewing audience in prime time and 3% in the performance period. The affected area of the Northern Cape will be temporarily until the migration from analogue to digital television. Viewers currently accessing SABC television channels via satellite are not affected by the move

Reply received: August 2014

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 674

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS: 17 JULY 2014

Ms V van Dyk (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) (a) How many copies of the publication Portrait of Leader: Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (ISBN 978-0-621-42397-6) were ordered and (ii) produced by the Government Communication and Information Centre (GCIS) and (b) what was the total cost of the production of this publication and (iii) breakdown of these costs;

(2) (a what is the rationale for the publication and (b) how is it in line with the core mandate of the GCIS;

(3) (a) Who is the intended audience, (b) what is the distribution plan for the publication, (c) how many copies of the publication have been disseminated according to the distribution plan and (d) how many copies remain in storage.

(4) (a) Which supplier received the contract to produce the publication and (b) was the publication procured in full compliance with supply chain management regulatory requirements; if not, (i) what deviations occurred and (ii) on what grounds were these deviations? NW758E

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

(1) (a) (i) 5 000 copies of the publication Portrait of a Leader: Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (ISBN 978-0-621-42397-6) were ordered and (ii) 5 000 copies were produced by the Government Communication and Information Centre (GCIS) and

(b) (i) the total cost of the production of this publication was R 302 731, 28 including vat. (ii) This included splitting, wrapping and pelleting, and delivery to the storage facilities.

(2) (A) the publication was commissioned to celebrate the life and achievements of former President NR Mandela, contextualizing his participation in the freedom struggle and eventual ascendance to the Presidency of the democratic South Africa. The publication is a contribution towards Nation Building, and is an important part of our shared narrative.

(b) The GCIS is mandated to develop media and communications collateral for State and Official Funeral by the Funeral Planning Committee. This is in line with the organisations mandate to disseminate government communication through publications and advertising.

(3) (a) The intended target for the publication was dignitaries that would likely attend these included Heads of State and Government, Members of Executive, South African heads of Missions abroad, Members of Parliament.

(b) The distribution plan is outlined below

c) 2973 number of copies have been disseminated according to the distribution plan and

(d) 607 copies remain in storage at the Department of Communications. The distribution store manages distribution of material for the Presidency, as well as the Ministry of Communications. These reserved publications wilparil be distributed to The Presidency) President, Ministers in the Presidency, and the Spousal Office) guests and dignitaries, and, national libraries on request as their stock require replenishing. It is not cost effective to reprint publications on demand.

4. (a) Government Printing Works received the contract to produce the publication and;

(b) this was in full compliance with supply chain management regulatory requirements; (i) no dividends occurred and (iii) there were no grounds for deviation

Reply received: August 2014

Please refer to number (1)

Reply received: August 2014

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 629

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS: 17 JULY 2014

Ms M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) How many (a) international and (b) domestic hotel bookings were made by the (i) her, (ii) her predecessors and(iii) departmental officials attending (aa) workshops, (bb) seminars, (cc) oversight visits or (dd) any other relevant meetings of the relevant portfolio committee from 1 April 2013 up to the latest specified date for which information is available;

(2) In respect of each specified booking, what was the (a) date, (b) name of the hotel, (c) number of delegates, (d) cost of the hotel booking for each delegate and € the nature of the relevant portfolio business dealt with? NW712E

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

1. (a) None (b) (i) (iii), this is a new Communications Ministry and 2014/2015 financial year and associated expenses is yet to be verified through normal auditing processes, in order to provide and accurate account of the information in question.

2. The information is yet to be verified through the normal auditing processes.

Reply received: September 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 596
DATE OF PUBLICATIONS 17 JULY 2014
Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) What was the cost of re-printing new Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) Strategic Plans following her appointment as the new Minister of Communications, (b) how many were re-printed and (c) what has been done with the previous version.

REPLY:
Minister of Communication
(a) R6000
(b) 60 copies were printed for tabling in Parliament
(c) The previous version is being used by the Department

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 595
DATE OF PUBLICATIONS 17 JULY 2014
Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What is the proposed cost per annum to the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) to develop and administer the envisaged qualification of a government communicator?

(2) How many such government communicators will be trained each year?

(3) Which institution will teach and award the qualification? NW678E

REPLY:

Minister of Communication

(1) A total amount of R699 504.00 was paid to a service provider to develop the curriculum. The curriculum was handed to the School of Government to administer.

(2) The School of Government will determine the annual intake of Government Communicators.

(3) The School of Government.

Reply received: November 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 453

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(a) When is the envisaged (i) start and (ii) end dates for the "Information for Empowerment Dialogues" and (b) which stakeholders will be visited and (c) which towns and cities will be visited and (d) how many officials will participate and (e) what is the budgeted cost for these Dialogues? NW536E

___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

The information for empowerment dialogues have been postponed to the next financial year. These fora will be used to conduct consultation on the white paper on communications as well as amendments to new legislation that the Ministry wants to introduce in the communications industry.

Stakeholders across the board will be invited this will include members of legislatures, members of the executive at all levels of government and stakeholders associated with all relevant entities reporting to the Ministry.

The budget will be located within current and future budgets earmarked for outreach programmes, once detailed planning commences there will be clarity about how much will be spent specifically for these dialogues to take place.

QUESTION 413

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 04 JULY 2014

Mrs M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What is the status of the suspension of a certain person (name furnished) and (b) what (i) salary and (ii) benefits are accruing to the person while on suspension

(2) (a) What outcomes does the SABC want to achieve in respect of this issue and (b) what steps is it taking to achieve specified outcomes?

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

1. The remainder of the fixed term contract of Mr. Molefe was paid to him on 31 May 2013 and therefore as from that date he is no longer an employee of the SABC. Mr. Molefe has challenged the SABC in two High Court Cases and one CCMA matter. In all three cases, the courts ruled against Mr. Molefe and had awarded costs to the SABC in the two High courts cases.

(b) (i) & (ii) Not applicable, Mr. Molefe is no longer an employee of the SABC.

2. (a) Not applicable, Mr. Molefe is no longer an employee of the SABC

(b) Not applicable, Mr. Molefe is no longer an employee of the SABC

Reply received: August 2014

Has a decision been taken the Afrikaans TV news from its current slot on SABC 2 to SABC 3?

___________________________________________________________________

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

Yes, the new slot is at 19H30 on SABC 3

Reply received: September 2014

QUESTION 413

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 04 JULY 2014

Mrs M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What is the status of the suspension of a certain person (name furnished) and (b) what (i) salary and (ii) benefits are accruing to the person while on suspension

(2) (a) What outcomes does the SABC want to achieve in respect of this issue and (b) what steps is it taking to achieve specified outcomes?

REPLY:

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

1. The remainder of the fixed term contract of Mr. Molefe was paid to him on 31 May 2013 and therefore as from that date he is no longer an employee of the SABC. Mr. Molefe has challenged the SABC in two High Court Cases and one CCMA matter. In all three cases, the courts ruled against Mr. Molefe and had awarded costs to the SABC in the two High courts cases.

(b) (i) & (ii) Not applicable, Mr. Molefe is no longer an employee of the SABC.

2. (a) Not applicable, Mr. Molefe is no longer an employee of the SABC

(b) Not applicable, Mr. Molefe is no longer an employee of the SABC

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 380

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 4 JULY, 2014

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications

(1) What are details of all of all flowers purchase by her department for each year between 1 April 2009 up to latest date for which information is available;

(2) What are the details of (a) (i) the address and (ii) the name of the office where the specific flowers were displayed, (b) for whose benefit were the flowers for each office where they displayed;

(3) in respect of flowers purchased for individuals, (a) what is the (i) name and (ii) relationship of the person to (aa) her and (bb) the Ministry and (b) what is the cost of each purchase;

(4) what are the details of any (a) contractual arrangements and (b) plans to purchase flowers in the future? NW432E

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

(1) No flowers were purchased

(2) Not applicable

(3) Not applicable

(4) Not applicable

Reply received: July 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 318

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 17 JUNE 2014

Mr GR Davies (DA) ask the Minister of Communication

(1) What are the details of office furniture ordered and or purchased for the use of her and/or her staff since 1 May 2014;

(2) In respect of each piece of furniture, (a) what is the description, (b) what is the breakdown of the costs, (c) where will each piece of furniture be used and (d) who will use each piece of furniture

(3) What are the details of furniture disposed of;

(4) In respect of each piece of furniture disposed of, (a) what the description, (b) original purchase costs and (c) on what date was it purchased;

(5) (a) how was this furniture disposed of, (b) what disposal method was used, (c) what is the name and contact details of person/s to whom it was disposed and (d) at what price was it disposed of ? NW399E

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

(1) No furniture was procured

(2) Not applicable

(3) No Furniture was disposed of

(4) Not applicable

(5) Not applicable

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 312

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 7 March 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 5

DATE OF REPLY:

Adv A de W Alberts (FF Plus) to ask the Minister of Communication:†

(1) Whether a tender to reclaim VAT from (a) the SA Broadcasting Corporation and (b) the SA Post Office has been awarded to a certain company (name furnished); if so, (i) when was the tender awarded, (ii) what is the period of the contract and (iii) what is the total value of the tender; if not,

(2) Whether the tender to reclaim VAT from the specified entities has been awarded to another company; if so, to which company?

NW365E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC and SAPO as follows:-

(1)(a) No tender has been awarded to the company referred to. However, a letter of intent unsigned by the SABC was found on record. The terms and conditions of the letter of intent had not been met (including BBBEE requirements) therefore a contract was not concluded.

(1)(b) No

(2) The SABC has been using a company called VATit for some years to carry out VAT recoveries on foreign payments.

SAPO has not awarded any tender for the purposes of reclaiming VAT on its behalf.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 306

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 7 March 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 5

DATE OF REPLY:

Mrs. J D Kilian (Cope) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Pursuant to engagement with the SA Broadcasting Corporation Board, (a) who will be appointed as acting group chief executive officer (GCEO) and (b) by what date;

(2) When will the positions of (a) chief financial officer and (b) chief operations officer be advertised?

(3) Whether her department and Ministry will approve the interim appointment of a board member as acting GCEO; if so, does that constitute a conflict of interest?

NW359E

REPLY:

1(a) and (b) Mr Tian Olivier has been appointed Acting GCEO.

2(a) The previous Chief Financial Officer has been dismissed and the post will be advertised soon.

2(b) The draft terms of settlement for an out of court settlement with the individual holding up the advertisement for a COO is with the National Treasury for its consideration.

(3) No.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 278

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 7 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 5

DATE OF REPLY:

Mr A C Steyn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether the SA Broadcasting Corporation has commissioned independent research into the public perception of its news and public affairs programmes across all television and radio channels; if so, (a) when was the research commissioned, (b) who conducted the research and (c) what amounts were they paid;

(2) (a) What is the outcome of the research and (b) what steps will he take in respect of the findings and recommendations of such research?

NW331E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:-

(1) Yes

(a) The research was commissioned in February 2013 and conducted between 22 April and 25 May 2013.

(b) Qualiforce (Pty) Ltd T/A Qualitative Intelligence.

(c) R716, 024 excluding VAT.

(2) (a) The outcome of the research refers directly to public perceptions about the SABC's News products, however there are three major areas which appear to need the most attention:

· The perception that the SABC is biased in favour of the ANC;

· The dull, boring uninteresting image in which the SABC in being seen; and

· The inability of various groups to understand what presenters are saying.

(b) The News Division assessed the perceptions identified in the above report against the actual on-air product for April 2013, using the services of an independent media monitoring and analysis company. The SABC News is currently in the process of creating a strategy to deal with the negative perceptions contained in the research findings.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 277

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 7 March 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 5

DATE OF REPLY:

Ms M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) (a) When was a certain legal firm (name furnished) appointed by the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), (b) for what purpose was the specified firm appointed and (c) what (i) was the brief and (ii) were the points of difference with the investigation by the Special Investigating Unit;

(2) Was the appointment approved by the board; if so, when;

(3) What amount was the firm paid for the investigation?

(4) Is the firm still contracted to work for the SABC; if so, what (a) is the brief and (b) are the terms of payment?

NW330E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:-

(1)(a) On 03 October 2012.

(b) To provide legal advice and an action plan in response to the recommendations of the findings of the Special Investigating Unit (SIU).

(c) (i) The brief required the attorneys to advise the SABC Board on what action (including criminal, civil or disciplinary), if any, could be taken by the SABC against all (current and former) employees named in the report, as well as against all directors (current and former) named in the SIU reports.

(ii) The Bokwa Attorneys differed with the SIU on a number of points and recommendations in the SIU Report. To try and enumerate these points in this reply would be time consuming and would produce a very bulky reply as they contested most of the recommendations.

(2) No, the appointment was approved by the Group Chief Executive Officer.

(3) The firm was paid R 5,476,180.

(4) (a) Yes, the firm is currently contracted to provide legal services. The firm is the SABC's attorneys of record for the matter relating to the carrying of SABC television channels on a satellite platform.

(b) The payment terms are dependent on the services rendered. As this is a litigious matter, the costs will also be determined by the proceedings.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 276

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 7 March 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 5

DATE OF REPLY:

Ms M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What is the total value of licence fees due to the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) as at the end of January 2013?

(2) (a) how many of these outstanding license fees are being legally contested, (b) to what value, (c) by whom are they legally contested and (d) why;

(3) (a) how many licence fees are overdue, (b) what are the names of the licence holders and (c) what amount is owed to ICASA in respect of overdue licence fees;

(4) How many licences were not renewed by the due date?

NW329E

REPLY:

I have been advised by ICASA as follows:-

(1) R853 399 600

(2) (a) Six (6)

(3) (a) 14 108

(b) The names of the licence holders are listed in the attached table.

(c) R10 617 850

(4) As of end January 2013:-

a) There were no broadcasting service licences which were due for renewal.

b) There were no unreserved postal service certificates which were due for renewal.

There were no electronic communications services and electronic communications network service licenses which were due for renewal.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 275

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 7 March 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 5

DATE OF REPLY:

Ms M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) How many meetings and appointments has a certain person (name forwarded) attended at the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) since being appointed as (a) Acting Chairperson and (b) Chairperson of the SABC Board?

(2) How many of these meetings were scheduled board meetings;

(3) (a) what was the purpose of the non-board meetings/appointments attended by the said person and (b) with whom did this person meet;

(4) (a) what fees are paid to the said person to attend non-board meetings and (b) by whom were they authorised?

NW328E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:-

(1) (a) 14 meetings as interim Board Chairperson.

(b) 15 meetings as Chairperson of the Board

(2) All 29 meetings as per above were scheduled quarterly meetings, scheduled special and/ or emergency meetings of the Board.

(3) (a) None. All meetings were those of the Board.

(b) Not applicable

(4) (a) None

(b) Not applicable

Reply received: August 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 207
DATE OF PUBLICATION: JUNE 2014
Mrs.M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

Has a legal settlement been reached with a certain person (name furnished) regarding his claim to the post of SABC chief operations officer; if no, what is the status of settlement negotiations; if so, (a) when was this reached and (b) what are the terms of the settlement? NW253

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

The matter is sub judice relevant details will be provided as soon as court processes are finalised

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 200

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 28 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 4

DATE OF REPLY:

Mrs J D Kilian (Cope) to ask the Minister of Communications:

Whether, pursuant to the dismissal of the suspended chief financial officer (CFO) of the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) for her role in the payment of the R1 million towards the ICT Indaba in Cape Town, his department investigated the matter to determine (a) who authorised or acted as co-signatories for the payment of R1 million rand and (b) whether the SABC Board approved the R1 million payment; if not, in each case, why not; if so, in each case, what are the relevant details?

NW211E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the Department as follows:-

a) It was co-signed by the Group Chief Executive Officer.

b) The SABC Board did not approve the payment. The amount of R1 million is below the threshold value that requires Board approval as per the SABC Delegation of Authority Framework.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 199

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 21 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 2

DATE OF REPLY:

Mrs J D Kilian (COPE) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether, pursuant to the release of the report by the Public Protector on irregularities by senior executives at the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), he will advise the SABC Board to take immediate steps to institute disciplinary and legal action against the Acting Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the misrepresentation of his qualifications to the SABC; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(2) Whether he will advise the SABC Board to take immediate steps to recover monies paid in irregular expenditure on salary increases to staff who were improperly appointed and promoted from the Acting COO;

(3) Whether he will advise the SABC Board to take immediate steps to review all their human resources processes pertaining to the creation of new posts, appointments and salary scales and progressions; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(4) Whether he will advise the SABC Board to take immediate steps to institute criminal charges against all those persons, including former board members, who were identified for having transgressed the law with irregular appointments; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? NW207E

REPLY:

(1), (2), (3) & (4) These questions overlap with those asked in question number 198 and the Honourable Member is referred to the answers to that question. If there is a legal case for the actions the Member proposes, of course, the necessary actions must be taken.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 198

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 21 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 2

DATE OF REPLY:

Mrs J D Kilian (COPE) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether he can indicate what steps he, as representative of the shareholders, will take to ensure that all those persons identified in the report by the Public Protector on serious administrative deficiencies identified in the senior management of the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), will be held accountable;

(2) Whether a certain person (name provided) will be called to a disciplinary hearing concerning the specified person's role in the irregular appointment of a certain person (name provided); if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(3) Whether he will take steps to determine a deadline by which date the three executive positions in the SABC Board should be filled; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(4) Whether he will request law enforcement agencies to institute criminal charges and civil suits against any departmental official that the report identifies in respect of any wrongdoing; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

NW206E

REPLY:

(1) Within five minutes of receiving the Public Protector's Report, it was referred to the Office of the Chief State Law Adviser for legal advice on what action a Minister could take. Within 24 hours of receiving the Public Protector's Report, I spoke with the Chairperson of the SABC about it. Within 72 hours, the Office of the Chief State Law Adviser gave us their legal opnion. Within 10 days we met with the SABC Board to discuss how they intend to process the Report, and also gave them a copy of the opinion from the Chief State Law Adviser. It is for the SABC Board, in the first instance, to decide on what action to take on the recommendations of the Public Protector's report. The Board is processing the Report. We are engaging them further on this. We will respond depending on the decisions the Board takes.

(2) The person concerned is challenging the accuracy of the findings against him. With the assistance of the Chief State Law Adviser, the Director General is engaging with the individual concerned.

(3) We have proposed a deadline for the appointment of a GCEO. As the CFO has been dismissed the Board will be advertising the post. The proposed out-of-court settlement with the person who legally challenges the SABC when it seeks to fill in the COO post is currently with the National Treasury for its consideration.

(4) Yes, if there is a legal case for this action.

Reply received: July 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 193

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS 17 JUNE 2014

Mrs M Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What are the details of all the costs of the maintenance of the pot plants in her (a) departmental offices and (b) official residence (i) in the (aa) 2009-10, (bb) 2010-11, (cc) 2011-12, (dd) 2012-13 and (ee) 2013-14 financial years and (ii) since 1 April 2014;

(2) in respect of the pot plant maintenance, (a) what is the (i) address and (ii) name of the office where they were/are displayed, (b) for whose benefit are these pot plants, (c) what was/is the value of maintenance for each office and (d) what are the details of any contracts and/or plans for the maintenance of these pot plants in the future? NW243E

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

(1) No pot plants were procured for the (a) Minister's office and her (b) official residence.

(2) Not applicable

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 162

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 21 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 2

DATE OF REPLY:

Mr A C Steyn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Have the 124 persons without personnel files highlighted in the Price Waterhouse Coopers audit of the SA Broadcasting Corporation's (SABC) staff in 2013 been identified; if so, (a) were they (i) employed via authorised recruitment and employment procedures and (ii) appointed to approved posts, (b) what are their job descriptions, (c) for how long have they been on the SABCs payroll and (d) what is the latest total annual remuneration paid to these persons;

(2) What action is being taken to (a) regularise or (b) terminate their employment if they were employed outside authorised employment procedures?

NW168E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:-

(1) (a) Yes, the 124 persons have been identified.

(i) Of the 124 files stated as missing in the PricewaterhouseCoopers report, 106 have since been found within the SABC personnel filing system. All 106 personnel files contain valid contracts of appointment/letters of appointment. For the remaining 18 employees, where no personnel files have been found, further investigations are continuing.

(ii) 120 of the identified employees are currently employed in approved positions on the SABC Human Capital Services (HCS) system. Four employees have since resigned from the SABC.

(b) The attached list of job titles provides an indication of what the incumbents jobs are. A summary of each employee's job description can be compiled and provided if required.

(c) Please see attached link list for years of service: http://db3sqepoi5n3s.cloudfront.net/files/rnw162annexure.pdf

(d) The total remuneration for the 120 employees still in the employ of the organisation amounts to R 28.8-million per annum as at 28 February 2014.

(2) (a) Where a need for regularisation becomes necessary, the SABC is open to exploring that option.

(b) If any case of non-compliance with the applicable policies, including recruitment, is uncovered, appropriate action will be taken, following all labour relations processes.

Reply received: March 2014

QUESTION NO: 161

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 21 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 2

DATE OF REPLY:

Mr A C Steyn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Has work started on selecting and digitising material from the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) archives for broadcast on the 24-hour entertainment channel; if so, (a) how much material and (b) which genres are being prepared;

(2) Has the cost of preparing this material been budgeted for; if not, how is the digitisation being financed; if so, (a) what is the cost and (b) has the amount been approved by the National Treasury?

NW167E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:-

(1) No, the work has not started.

(a) Not applicable

(b) Not applicable

(2) No

(a) The cost is self-funded from the revenue received from MultiChoice.

(b) No, National Treasury approval is not required.

Reply received: March 2014

QUESTION NO: 160

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 21 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 2

DATE OF REPLY:

Mr A C Steyn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) When will the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) launch its 24-hour entertainment channel in accordance with its agreement with MultiChoice signed on 3 July 2013?

(2) (a) what is the reason for the delay and (b) when is the expected launch date;

(3) Has there been a discussion with MultiChoice on the failure to launch the channel on the date set out in the agreement;

(4) are there any penalties payable by the SABC for its failure to launch the channel on time; if not, what are the reasons for this; if so, (a) what are these penalties and (b) when were they paid or are they due to be paid?

NW166E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:

(1) The SABC is still involved in discussions with MultiChoice to finalise the channel proposition. Once agreement has been reached, the launch date will be agreed upon between the two parties.

(2) (a) & (b) See reply in (1) above.

(3) Yes, the two parties are engaged in ongoing discussions.

(4) No penalties are payable as the parties are still in discussions.

(a) Not applicable.

(b) Not applicable.

Reply received: July 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 159

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS 17 JUNE 2014

Ms N W A Michael (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What are the details of all expenditure that was found to have been (a) irregular and (b) wasteful in her department for each year from 1 April 2009 up to the latest specified date for which information is available;

(2) in respect of each such finding of (a) irregular and (b) wasteful expenditure, (i) what (aa) is the description thereof, (bb) is the value thereof and (cc) action has been taken against the persons accountable for such expenditure and (ii) how much thereof (aa) has been recovered and (bb) from whom? NW173E

_____________________________________________________________

REPLY:

Minister of Communication

(1) (a) Irregular and (b) wasteful expenditure incurred were disclosed in the audited financial statements.

(2) Annual financial statements are published in the Department's and/or entities' Annual Reports which have been tabled and discussed in Parliament for the year 2009/2010; 2010/2011; 2011/2012; 2012/2013 and are public documents. The 2013/2014 Annual Report is expected to be tabled in accordance with normal parliamentary processes and is expected later this year.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 158

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 21 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 2

DATE OF REPLY:

Ms M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What was the reason for the urgent meeting of the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) Board prior to the resignation of the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO);

(2) What was the (a) date, (b) time of commencement and (c) duration of the meeting?

(3) (a) What items were on the agenda and (b) which board members attended?

NW164E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:-

(1) The GCEO did not resign, but it was an agreed separation. In terms of governance processes of the SABC, the Board has to deliberate on the appointments, separations or resignations of the GCEO, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer prior to informing the Minister of the Communications to obtain his confirmation/approval.

(2) (a) The date was 29 January 2014.

(b) The time was 10:00.

(c) Three hours.

(3 (a) The only item on the agenda was the GCEO's separation from the SABC.

(b) The following Board Members were present:

Ms. Z E Tshabalala,

Prof. M O Maguvhe,

Ms. R Kalidas,

Dr. B Aug Khumalo,

Mr. M R Lubisi,

Mr. V G M Mavuso,

Ms. N M Mhlakaza,

Mr. K Naidoo, and

Dr. N A Tshidzumba.

Reply received: March 2014

QUESTION NO: 157

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 21 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 2

DATE OF REPLY:

Ms M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether advertisements to fill the position of the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) chief operating officer have been placed; if not, (a) what are the reasons and (b) when will the advertisements be placed; if so, (i) where and (ii) when were the advertisements placed;

(2) Whether applications are closed; if not, when is the closing date for applications; if so, (a) when was the closing date for applications, (b) how many applicants applied and (c) when will the position be filled;

(3) What methods are being used to find and fill the position if no advertisements are to be placed?

NW163E

REPLY:

(1) The SABC informs me that the advertisement to fill the position of the SABC Chief Operating Officer was placed on 3 February 2013. It was later withdrawn due to legal action. There are ongoing negotiations between the individual who took legal action and representatives of the Department and SABC to settle this matter.

(i) The previous advertisement was placed in the Sunday Times and City Press.

(ii) The aforesaid advertisement was placed on 3 February 2013.

(2) Not applicable.

(a) Not applicable

(b) Not applicable

(c) Not applicable

(3) Not applicable.

Reply received: July 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 127

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS 17 JUNE 2014

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What are the details of official credit cards issued to (a) her and/or (b) her staff;

(2) in respect of each credit card, (a) what is the (i) name and (ii) organogram position of the user, (b) what is the (i) maximum permissible value of each purchase and (ii) total credit limit of the card, (c) what are the details of permissible purchases for which the credit cards may be used and (d) may alcoholic beverages be purchased;

(3) in respect of purchases made with each credit card during the period 8 May 2014 and/or thereafter up to the latest specified date for which information is available, (a) what is the (i) name and (ii) organogram position of the user, (b) what is the (i) value of each purchase made, (ii) what are the details of each item purchased and (iii) for what purpose was each purchase made and (c) were any alcoholic beverages purchased; if so, (i) what are the (aa) details and (bb) value of these purchases and (ii) for what purpose was each purchase made?

NW138E

_____________________________________________________________

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

(1) Neither the (a) Minister nor (b) officials of the Department are issued with an official credit card which is in accordance with paragraph 15.10.3.3 of the Government Gazette number 37042 (15 November 2013).

(2) Not applicable

(3) Not applicable

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 119

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 13 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 01

DATE OF REPLY:

Mrs J D Kilian (Cope) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Pursuant to confirmation by the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) that the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) has resigned, (a) what are the reasons for her resignation two years into a five-year contract, (b) when is her last day at the SABC (c)(i) was she requested by (aa) him or (bb) the Board to withdraw her resignation, and (ii) will she be paid out for the remainder of her contract period; if so, what are the relevant details in each case;

(2) Did (a) he or (b) the SABC Board offer the GCEO a short-term contract as acting GCEO until a permanent appointment is made; if so, what are the terms of the short-term contract; if not, (i) why not, (ii)(aa) when will the vacancy be advertised and (bb) what are the minimum academic qualifications for the position and (iii) which SABC employee will be appointed as acting GCEO until a permanent appointment is made;

(3) How does the SABC Board intend to stabilise the executive component of the Board in view of the fact that all three executive directors will be in an acting capacity for the foreseeable future;

(4) Whether he has expressed any concern about the leadership shortcomings in the executive and management levels at the SABC as highlighted in the PricewaterhouseCoopers Skills audit as well as the qualified audit report by the Auditor-General in the 2012-13 financial year; if so, what interventions are planned by his department;

(5) Has his department considered a move to place the SABC under the administration of a management and business consultancy firm; if not, why not?

NW125E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the SABC as follows:-

(1) The previous GCEO of the SABC, Ms Lulama Mokhobo, signed a private and confidential 'Mutual Separation' agreement with the SABC in terms of which she agreed to serve one full month notice period that ended on the 28^th February 2014. The parties are bound by the terms of the agreement and accordingly cannot disclose the details thereof to third parties by virtue of its confidentiality.

(2)(a) The matter was considered – but was not viable.

(2)(b) No

(2)(i) The Board of the SABC investigated various options for filling the vacancy of the GCEO position and chose to exercise the option of an interim GCEO as per the provisions (rights and obligations) prescribed in the current articles/memorandum of incorporation of the SABC.

(2)(ii)(aa) Very soon.

(2)(ii)(bb) A post-graduate degree, preferably MBA or similar

(2)(iii) Mr. Christian Olivier

(2) The SABC Board appreciates the urgency and need for stabilising the executive director roles of the entity and will endeavour to make the necessary appointments for the positions of GCEO, Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) as soon as it is practically and legally possible. In this regard the Board has committed that such appointments will be processed and effected as soon as it is possible only after the necessary due processes are fulfilled in accordance with the prescribed regulatory and policy frameworks that the SABC is subject to.

(3) The SABC has put the following plans and actions in place to address the findings of the skills audit:-

· Four suitably skilled Group Executives have been appointed since the report was concluded in June 2013 and the remaining vacant positions will be filled as soon as possible.

· Twenty one executives and senior managers completed the Executive Development Programme during the 2013/14 financial year. This programme will be further extended in the 2014/15 financial year.

· Coaching and mentoring for senior managers and executives will be rolled out for the 2014/15 financial year.

· An increased budget for technical skills has been prioritised.

The Department is currently monitoring implementation of action plans to address the audit findings of the Auditor-General in respect of the 2012/13 financial year.

(4) No, as it is not necessary at this stage.

Reply received: March 2014

QUESTION NO: 104

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 13 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 1

DATE OF REPLY:

Mrs J D Kilian (COPE) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether, pursuant to the tabling of the Gobodo Forensic Report into alleged administrative and financial irregularities at the Universal Service and Access Agency (USAASA), he has (a) studied the findings of the forensic report into the public entity in full and (b) has intervened decisively to restore stability and trust in the agency which is a key driver in the roll-out of digital terrestrial television;

(2) (a) What are the full details of the steps he has taken against the USAASA Board for not exercising their fiduciary duties in terms of the Public Finance Management Act, Act 1 of 1999, (PFMA) and in terms of the Companies Act when they appointed the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) against the advice of the Corporate Services Executive, (b) why did (i) he or (ii) his department not instruct the agency to terminate the contract of the CEO immediately after the Gobodo Forensic Report was tabled and before the probation period of the CEO had expired, (c) why did he not remove and charge the entire USAASA Board in terms of the Provisions of the PFMA for the irregular awarding of a 100% subsidy to Cell C where a former USAASA employee holds an executive position and a certain company (name furnished) for the irregular payments made to that company;

(3) Whether the more than R 38-million paid into an unknown bank account for services rendered by the said company has been recovered; if not, what steps have been taken to recover the monies;

(4) Whether the amounts paid out to projects from public funds in the Universal Service Access Fund (USAF) have been properly reconciled and accounted for; if not, why not; if so, (a) what were the findings and (b) what are the relevant details of the steps that has he taken to revise the USAASA and USAF funding model to prevent corrupt activities;

(5) Whether (a) any legal costs have been incurred by his department in the disciplinary cases of USAASA employees who acted as whistleblowers; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what steps has he taken thus far to ensure the reinstatement of USAASA employees who were called to disciplinary hearings and dismissed when they acted in the best interests of the State to prevent financial losses through corrupt activities?

NW108E

REPLY:

(1), (2), (3), (4) & (5) As explained, the Gobodo Report is a draft report. We sought to negotiate a settlement with the USAASA Board and CEO but were not successful. The Board rejected the findings of the Gobodo Report. Some of the parties affected by the report were not interviewed. We referred the Report and the Board's response to the Office of the Chief State Law Advisor and were advised to do a further forensic investigation. We met with trhe USAASA Board on 28 January 2014 and they agreed with our decision in this regard. This is now being done. If the final report provides the legal basis to take action, the Ministry and USAASA Board will have no choice but to do so.

Reply received: July 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 94

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS 17 JUNE 2014

Mr C MacKenzie (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) How many (a) international and (b) domestic flights were undertaken by (i) her and (ii) her predecessors using (aa) aircraft operated by the military, (bb) aircraft chartered by the military or (cc) commercial aircraft during the period 1 April 2013 up to the latest specified date for which information is available;

(2) In respect of each specified flight, what was the (a) (i) date and (ii) place of (aa) departure and (bb) arrival and (b)(i) total cost and (ii) breakdown of such costs? NW103E

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

(1) President Zuma on 25 May 2014 announced the establishment of a new Communications Ministry. Since the announcement, there were no official international trips undertaken by the Minister of Communications. The official domestic trips will be verified and accounted for in the Annual Report.

(2) Not applicable

Reply received: March 2014

QUESTION NO: 72

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 13 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 1

DATE OF REPLY:

Ms M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) (a) What criminal or civic investigations are being conducted by his (i) department or (ii) any other entity or (iii) state organisation into former executive and senior management of the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) Board, (b) what (i) are the details of the persons that are being investigated and (ii) actions of theirs are being investigated, (c) who is investigating each case, (d) when (i) did these investigations commence and (ii) are these investigations to be concluded;

(2) Whether any cases have been concluded in the past calendar year; if so, what are the relevant details?

NW73E

REPLY:

(1)(a)(i) None

(1)(a)(ii) There is to be a follow-up to the SIU report.

(1)(a)(iii) None

(1)(b) Not applicable, apart from the SIU report presented to the Portfolio Committee on Communications.

(1)(c) Not applicable

(1)(d) Not applicable

(2) Not applicable

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION 71

71. Ms M R Shinn (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) What is the status of the enquiry into the conduct of certain directors-general (names furnished) which was prompted by the findings of Parliament's Joint Committee on Ethics and Members' Interests report into the former minister;

(2) whether the enquiry has been completed; if not, when is it likely to be completed; if so, (a) what action does it recommend and (b) what action is being taken as a result of these recommendations;

(3) will the report be published (a) on his department's website or (b) elsewhere; if not, why not; if so, when? NW72E

(1) They remain Deputy Director-Generals.

(2) The Public Service Commission has not finished its inquiry yet. As the individuals concerned are also alleged to have committed other wrong-doings there is an overall process envisaged within the Department of dealing with the allegations the Honourable Member is raising. This process has begun.

(3) a) and b) This will depend on legal advice.

Reply received: April 2014

QUESTION NO: 59

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 14 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 1

DATE OF REPLY:

Mr S Mokgalapa (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) How much does his department plan to spend on (a) advertising, (b) communication and (c) marketing between 1 January 2014 and 30 April 2014 (i) in total and (ii) as a breakdown of the amount;

(2) (a) what mediums is his department going to use in each case and (b) who is the service provider to be used;

(3) What is the main message that his department plans to communicate during this time?

NW60E

REPLY:

I have been advised by the Department as follows:-

(1)(a) R 1, 284 Million

(1)(b) R 2, 250 Million

(1)(c)(i) R 3, 534 Million

(1)(c)(ii) R 214, 000 on average per event.

(2)(a) The Department will use the Ministerial Imbizos to communicate the work of the Department

(2)(b) All Imbizos are managed in-house by the Department.

(3) South Africa is celebrating 20 Years of Freedom in 2014, and the Department of Communications as well as other Government departments are mobilising South Africans around social cohesion for this historic occasion.

Reply received: July 2014

QUESTION NUMBER: 54

DATE OF PUBLICATIONS 17 JUNE 2014

Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Has an agreement been reached by the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) with a certain person (name furnished) as to when the post of chief operating officer will be advertised; if not, why not; if so, when will the post be advertised;

(2) (a) what is the status of interviewing candidates and appointing successful candidates for the posts of SABC's group (i) chief executive officer and (ii) chief financial officer, (b) how many candidates will be interviewed and (c) is the interview process being handled by external recruitment specialists; if so, (aa) what is the name of the firm and (bb) when will the appointments be made? NW60E

__________________________________________________________

REPLY:

Minister of Communications

(1) No agreement has been reached as yet.

(1)(a) The relevant parties together with Ministry of Communications still need to discuss the issue in order to find or establish a final settlement on the matter.

(1)(b) Not applicable.

(2)(a)(i)& (ii) The advertisement for both the Group Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer positions closed on 12 May 2014. At this stage, an external recruitment specialist is being selected through the appropriate procurement processes.

(2)(b) The number of candidates to be shortlisted and interviewed is unknown.

(2)(c) Yes

(2)(aa) Refer to (2)(a)(i)&(ii)

(2)(bb) The process to appoint the new Chief Executive Officer of the SABC will be finalised in the next three months.

Reply received: March 2014

QUESTION NO: 2

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 13 February 2014

QUESTION PAPER NO: 1

DATE OF REPLY:

Mrs J D Kilian (COPE) to ask the Minister of Communications:

(1) Whether, with reference to the Gobodo Forensic Audit into alleged administrative and financial irregularities at the Universal Service and Access Agency (USAASA), his department has intervened to protect whistle-blowers from possible disciplinary action relating to their role in exposing corrupt practices; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(2) (a) How many members of staff have been called for disciplinary hearings in the past six months and (b) in respect of each of the employees, what were the charges;

(3) Whether any members of staff were subsequently dismissed; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(4) When will the report of the Gobodo Forensic Audit be released;

(5) Whether any steps have been taken to charge the accounting authority and/or chief executive officer to give effect to the findings and recommendations of the forensic audit; if not, why not; if so, what are the full details?

NW2E

REPLY:

(1) We only heard about the allegations of "whistle-blowers" being penalised in January and raised this at the meeting with the USAASA Board on 28 January.

It was agreed that the CEO will make available information about the staff facing disciplinary action to the Director-General of the Department. This matter is being processed.

(2) I am advised by USAASA that:-

(a) There are currently two officials who have been placed on precautionary suspension, in line with the "Disciplinary Code and Procedure of the Agency". In addition, there are two Executive Managers whose contracts of employment were terminated for reasons related to the non-confirmation of their probation.

(b) The two officials placed on precautionary suspension were charged with dereliction of duty and/or poor work performance, based on separate and different sets of facts. The two Executive Managers whose employment contracts were terminated did not perform up to the required standard.

(3) No official was dismissed.

(4) & (5) The Gobodo Report is a draft report. We sought to negotiate a settlement with the USAASA Board and CEO but were not successful. The Board rejected the findings of the Gobodo Report. Some of the parties affected by the report were not interviewed. We referred the Report and the Board's response to the Office of the Chief State Law Advisor and were advised to do a further forensic investigation. We met with trhe USAASA Board on 28 January and they agreed with our decision in this regard. This is now being done. If the final report provides the legal basis to take action, the Ministry and USAASA Board will have no choice but to do so.