The Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI) has requested that the closing date for nominations for the next SABC board be extended, reports www.iol.co.za
In a statement released on Tuesday, the FXI criticised parliament's portfolio committee on communications in its handling of the process, urging it to heed the letter and spirit of the Broadcasting Act .
This required the committee to allow "participation by the public in the nomination process" and "transparency and openness" in the appointment of 12 board members.
What appeared to be going wrong was that advertisements calling for nominations were so small, they did not give sufficient publicity to the issue, read a FXI statement.
Also, the programme for public hearings of short-listed candidates was "unworkable" and vulnerable to suspicion that candidates had already been earmarked, the FXI said.
"In terms of this programme, committee members will be handed CVs of nominees on July 30. For the next two days, the committee will short-list candidates.
"Incredibly, interviews for the short-listed candidates begin the day after the completion of the short-listing process. This is unworkable, and may well lead to suspicions that candidates have already been earmarked."
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