Close to 50 witnesses could be called to the inquiry into the SABC’s affairs and its Board’s fitness to hold office.

These could include former executives who were suspended or dismissed and also the seven journalists who were dismissed and then re-instated.

On Wednesday, Parliament’s Communications Committee decided to postpone the inquiry to next month.

The inquiry’s focus will include corporate governance issues at the SABC, the latest appointment of Hlaudi Motsoeneng and whether the Board has failed to carry out its duties.

ANC Whip in the Communications Committee, Mzi Kalako, says the committee expects SABC Board members to physically participate in the inquiry instead of sending legal representatives.

He says Parliament interviewed and selected members of the Board and not their legal representatives.

“We would expect them to physically be present in the inquiry to answer for themselves. People who will know how the Board functions is them and not their legal representatives,” says Kalako.