Dear Editor
The DA welcomes the report by the minister of Communications and Digital Technologies on the progress made by the department on the Analogue Switch Off (ASO) in the Portfolio Committee on Tuesday.
The transition to digital TV signal coverage provides higher immunity against loss in generation, noise, and distortion.
We note that the current rollout has encountered difficulties, including a court process and a number of citizens who have complained that they have not received installation of set-top boxes (STB) after applying using the prescribed methods.
The minister reported that for the extended period of registration, July to September 2022 a total of 178 300 new registrations were recorded and not the millions of applications as previously alleged.
The DA noted in the meeting that the with all efforts to connect most of the population; some will fall through the cracks. However, the ASO project cannot run perpetually; as this has costs implications. The department must provide a definitive date on when the rollout will be completed.
To ensure that the STB applications awareness message gets to South Africans, the government created awareness through SABC public radio stations, collaborated with community media platforms, held physical community engagements, used social media platforms as well as consulted with the House of Traditional Affairs and Khoisan and the South African Local Government Authority (SALGA). The DA notes the steps taken to create awareness but believe that this number should be much higher.
Timeframes for the finalisation of this process must be adhered to, with the majority of South Africans being migrated to STB’s. We would like to emphasize that this process should also not be open ended, as this would have massive cost implications
We therefore urge all South African who qualify for free set top boxes (STB) to use this opportunity to ensure they are migrated.
Regards
Tsholofelo Bodlani MP
DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Telecommunications and Digital Services
