Where’s the Afrikaans news? – DA & AfriForum fume!

SABC

Cape Town – The Democratic Alliance (DA) and AfriForum have challenged the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) over the abrupt disappearance of the Afrikaans news segment on SABC2.

DA spokesperson Willie Aucamp criticised the lack of communication from the SABC, demanding clarity on whether the removal was permanent or a temporary measure.

“The sudden disappearance of the Afrikaans news bulletin this past weekend, without any communication from the SABC on the reasons behind this decision, is troubling.

“The DA demands that the SABC provide immediate clarification on why this essential service has been halted. It is crucial that we understand whether this is a permanent change, a once-off incident, or something else entirely.

“We will write to the SABC to request urgent answers regarding this matter, and we call on the SABC to restore the Afrikaans news bulletin as soon as possible, ensuring that all South Africans, regardless of language preference, continue to receive reliable and timely news,” Aucap said in a statement.

He emphasised that the Afrikaans news bulletin serves over 300,000 viewers who pay for their TV licences, and called for its immediate reinstatement.

Similarly, AfriForum sent a letter to SABC leadership demanding an explanation.

According to IOL, Alana Bailey, head of Cultural Affairs at AfriForum, argued that Afrikaans is a significant language community and a key contributor to advertising revenue for the SABC.

She warned that removing the segment could alienate a financially strong audience and undermine the broadcaster’s duty to serve all language groups.

Both the DA and AfriForum stressed that access to news in all official languages is essential and vowed to push for answers.

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