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A dramatic story is playing out behind the scenes of the popular SABC2 Tshivenda soapie Muvhango.
This week, actors downed their scripts for the second time in three months after their salaries were not paid.
This comes a few weeks after Word of Mouth Pictures, the production house responsible for the soapie, fired CEO Mandla KaNozulu for the alleged mismanagement of millions of rands.
A support staff member at Muvhango’s Johannesburg studios, who spoke to City Press this week, said the cast members were called to a meeting on Tuesday. They were informed about the production’s money issues.
“Everyone was informed that there is no money and therefore we cannot be paid this month.” The staffer said:
In November, City Press reported that the cast and crew were only told on payday that they would not be paid because there was a payment delay on the SABC’s side.
The public broadcaster confirmed the delay before making the payment within a week.
An actor said some of the cast members who travelled from as far afield as Venda in Limpopo to film scenes in Johannesburg packed their bags and returned home without filming because of the unpaid salaries.
“We are not working this week because no one has been paid. The cast members from Venda left and no scenes have been shot because our salaries are not in,” the actor said.
“We have asked them to inform us in time when there are [money] issues because it can’t be that we are always informed at the eleventh hour.
He said:
City Press understands that the cast and crew members did not show up for work after the staff meeting.
Another staff member revealed that, even though the producers blamed the SABC, the main financial issues were attributed to the alleged mismanagement under KaNozulu.
In December, City Press reported that KaNozulu, who was appointed two years ago, was allegedly frog-marched off the set of the popular show Umkhokha – another Word of Mouth Pictures production – after he ignored a suspension notice pending an investigation into mismanagement of funds.
The staff member revealed that the investigation, which was now being handled by the SABC’s legal department, found that KaNozulu had misused more than R14 million of the company’s money.
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KaNozulu, a renowned playwright, author and musician, neither answered his phone, nor responded to text messages sent to him seeking comment.
Last month, he took to his Instagram page and posted a message that read: “When you destroy someone’s life with a lie, take it as a loan it will come back to you with interest.”
SABC Acting Group Executive: Corporate Affairs and Marketing Mmoni Seapolelo said: “The SABC can confirm that the payment to Word of Mouth Productions was effected as per the agreement between Word of Mouth and the SABC.”
Seapolelo could not be drawn into commenting about KaNozulu’s dismissal.
Word of Mouth Pictures founder and executive director Duma Ka Ndlovu was not immediately available to comment.
