Threat to Surve’s Independent Newspapers

“Their future is in very serious trouble. The future is bleak. They might only be rescued if they can be pulled into another very big company.”

That was how Chris Whitfield, former head of Cape papers at Independent Newspapers, responded to a question about what might be in store for Sekunjalo Independent Media.

The Public Investment Corporation (PIC) has lodged an application to liquidate Sekunjalo Independent Media, the company that purchased Independent Media in 2013, partly through a controversial PIC loan.

Whitfield and his co-author, former Cape Times and Business Report editor Alide Dasnois, were speaking at the launch of their new book, Paper Tiger, about the tumultuous past decade at Independent.

The book focuses on the story of controversial Sekunjalo chairman Iqbal Surve’s troubled reign over the Independent media conglomerate over the past 6½ years.

Independent publishes numerous major titles, including the Cape Times, Cape Argus and Weekend Argus, Isolezwe, Business Report, The Mercury, The Star, the Sunday Tribune, Daily Voice and Pretoria News.

Last month, Surve’s offices in Cape Town were raided by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority.

It was probing a case involving Surve’s company Sekunjalo Investment Holdings allegedly engaging in irregular share trading against another of his companies, Ayo Technology Solutions.

In the face of all this, how would these titles, established household names, survive, the authors were asked.

“Three of the papers can be saved out of the 14 or 15,” answered Whitfield. “That’s probably the best we can hope for.”

Dasnois added that it had always been notoriously difficult to gain insight into the facts behind Surve’s business dealings, but “the Sagarmatha listing showed us that the newspapers are making an annual loss”.

She added that, whatever happened, she believed there would always be a need for a quality English newspaper in Cape Town.

Media veteran Professor Anton Harber, who hosted the discussion, said in his view the best thing that could happen was that the proposed liquidation would “take down Iqbal Surve and his empire”, but the obliteration of local city and regional titles would be a “big loss”.

He said he hoped a “mixture of philanthropists and others will step in ... rich people who care ... benign philanthropists, to save at least one title in each city”, but with editorial independence somehow maintained.

The authors agreed that Surve had hoped that having control over such influential newspapers might lead to other business opportunities.

Said Dasnois: “The idea was to use the papers to curry favour with politicians to get business somewhere else. They become a tool for political and corporate interests, all in the name of profit.”

Said Harber: “... that business model failed dismally.”

The papers became a tool for political and corporate interests, all in the name of profit.

Alide Dasnois co-author