Court rules in favour of SABC after cancelling Lorna Vision contract

Cape Town – The Johannesburg high court this week ruled in favour of the SABC after the public broadcaster had cancelled a contract with debt collecting firm Lorna Vision. 

In a ruling delivered on Thursday July 26, Lorna Vision’s contract with the SABC was set aside and the company was ordered to pay the SABC’s legal costs.

The Sunday Times reported last year that former SABC CEO James Aguma awarded a debt collection contract to Lorna Vision in 2015 – allegedly without honouring the necessary procurement processes.

Sources told the Sunday Times that debt collection under Lorna Vision did not really improve. Prior to the company’s appointment the function was fulfilled by the SABC's own internal licence fee unit.

Earlier this year, the interim SABC board terminated the public broadcaster’s contract with Lorna Vision, thereby acting on the parliamentary ad hoc committee’s recommendations to terminate the contract.

Subsequent to the termination, Lorna Vision instituted legal proceedings, challenging the SABC’s decision.

“The SABC welcomes this verdict and looks forward to restoring its direct relationship with its television licence holders,” its spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said in the statement. 

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