The Press Ombudsman is to investigate the Department of Communications’ (DoC) complaint against The Sunday Times newspaper, concerning what the South African minister for communications Dina Pule describes as a “smear campaign”.
HumanIPO reported on last week the Press Council of South Africa (PCSA) had accused Pule’s spin doctor, Wisani Ngobeni, of reaching “illogical conclusions” and using the complaints system for political gain, but the Press Ombudsman has subsequently decided to investigate the complaint.
The South African Press Association is reporting ombudsman Johan Retief as saying today: “I have decided to take the complaint.”
Section 3.1 of the press code stipulates the press “shall not allow commercial, political, personal or other non-professional considerations to influence or slant reporting”.
In April, Pule attacked the Sunday Times for their reporting over the previous nine months, in which made a series of allegations of corruption against the minister concerning the ICT Indaba in Cape Town last year and an inappropriate relationship with Phosane Mngqibisa.
As a result of the accusations by the Sunday Times, Pule is currently under investigation by the police, parliament’s ethics committee and the public protector.
