Pretoria - The Presidency has set the record straight that President Jacob Zuma was not involved in the recruitment processes of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Presidency said it was concerned about certain media reports that linked the President to the recruitment of a Chief Operations Officer for the public broadcaster.
It said Dina Pule, the Minister of Communications, was handling the matter on behalf of government and had expressed the views of the executive.
"The Presidency has no role in the matter. The President is not involved in the recruitment process and any internal process of the public broadcaster. It is regrettable that his name has been dragged into this matter in this manner," said the Presidency.
Pule, meanwhile, has asked the SABC board to suspend the process of recruiting a Chief Operating Officer.
According to a statement, the minister became aware of the process the SABC intended to follow to appoint the COO on Friday.
She immediately asked the board to suspend the current search and follow a "normal and wider recruitment appointment process".
