On the 15th October from 18:30–19:30 the SABC, the public broadcaster, conducted a forty-five 
minute live interview with Mr Zuma, the President of the African National Congress (ANC), the governing party. Complaints from the Inkatha Freedom Party and NADECO (both political parties), as well as from two members of the public were received by the Registrar of the Commission.
The core of the complaints from Inkatha and Nadeco and the two public complainants is, in the opinion of the Tribunal, that it is unfair of the SABC to have granted Mr Zuma an hour-long slot during prime evening time to address problems within the ANC and, thereafter, to address policy issues of the ANC. The complaints are not, essentially, that the programme itself was unfair, but that time was given to one political party without extending the same privilege to other parties to put forward their policies.
Held
- that since the election date has not yet been proclaimed, the rules as to equitable time division in terms of the Electronic Communications Act are not yet applicable;
- that the Complaints and Compliance Committee of ICASA would have exclusive jurisdiction to adjudicate complaints during the election period and recommend sanctions to the Council of ICASA.
- that the Broadcasting Code and relevant sanctions do not provide for an order that time be granted in a non-election period, except when a person (or a political party) is seriously criticised on a matter of public importance, an opportunity to answer would be ordered – however, since there had been no criticism levelled during the interview against any other political party, this provision was not triggered.
- that, in the result, the complaints were not upheld. In effect, the complaints from the political parties amounted to an application for time. These applications were not upheld since they are not valid in this pre-election period, when “election time rules” (as to be found in sections 56-59 of the ECA and Regulations of ICASA) do not yet apply. The complaints by members are dismissed on the same basis.
Observation: In closing, it should be mentioned, though obiter, that, by having granted the ANC an opportunity to put its policies in the interview with Mr Zuma, the SABC should closely consider its position in terms of clause 36.1 of the Broadcasting Code, which provides as follows:
- In presenting a programme in which controversial issues of public importance are discussed, a licensee shall make reasonable efforts to fairly present opposing points of view either in the same programme or in a subsequent programme forming part of the same series of programmes presented within a reasonable period of time of the original broadcast and within substantially the same time slot.