Production company Bakwena Productions Media Group says it is prepared to approach the High Court to interdict the SABC from unlawfully removing the production of popular telenovela Pimville.
“Bakwena accordingly confirms that it is fully prepared to approach the High Court on an urgent basis for appropriate interdictory relief should any unlawful attempt be made to remove the production, transfer the production to another entity, interfere with Bakwena’s contractual rights, or unlawfully appropriate the productioninfrastructure, intellectual property, or production continuity already established by Bakwena,” the entity said in strongly worded statement by its executive producer Rashaka Muofhe.
The SABC took a decision to can Pimville after accusing Bakwena of breaching their contract and poor governance. This after Bakwena allegedly failed to pay salaries of the cast and crew and blamed its alleged liquidity crisis on the SABC.
In the statement released on Tuesday, Bakwena accused the SABC of attempting to unfairly shift blame for the ongoing production crisis while allegedly failing to honour its own contractual obligations.
Bakwena insists that the broadcaster’s public narrative is misleading and does not reflect the true state of affairs behind the scenes.
According to the production company, its attorneys submitted a detailed legal notice to SABC executives, the broadcaster’s board and legal representatives on May 12 2026. The notice allegedly outlined repeated contractual breaches, operational failures, delayed approvals, governance inconsistencies, funding instability and payment defaults committed by the SABC.
Bakwena said the legal correspondence was supported by extensive documentary evidence, including payment schedules, approved cashflow frameworks, invoices, operational reports, production records, budget approval trails, financial reconciliations and WhatsApp communications between the parties.
The company further claims that the SABC still owes Bakwena a substantial amount exceeding approximately 27% of the approved production budget, excluding VAT, interest and consequential damages linked to unpaid milestone obligations.
According to Bakwena, the original production budget for Pimville was also reduced by approximately 38% without proper due process. The company alleges it was informed that the cuts were made in order to redirect resources toward supporting new productions at the broadcaster.
Despite the financial strain, Bakwena says it continued producing and delivering episodes in order to preserve jobs, maintain continuity and protect the interests of viewers.
“The reality is straightforward: production cannot continue where the commissioning broadcaster withholds agreed contractual funding necessary to sustain operations, employees, suppliers, technical services, cast, crew and post-production delivery,” the statement read.
The production company also expressed concern over reports that the SABC may attempt to replace Bakwena with another production house while the existing production agreement remains active and legal processes are still ongoing.
Bakwena warned that any attempt to remove the company from the production or transfer Pimville to another entity would amount to a serious breach of contract and would be met with urgent legal action.
The company added that it would oppose any attempt to interfere with its contractual rights or unlawfully appropriate production infrastructure, intellectual property or production continuity already established by Bakwena.
The production house further described Pimville as deeply personal to the Muofhe family, saying the show represents the creative legacy and life’s work of the late Brenda Muofhe.
“It remains what the family regards as her ‘grandchild’,” the statement said.
Bakwena also acknowledged the devastating impact the production pause has had on actors, crew members, suppliers and technical personnel whose livelihoods depend on the continuation of the show.
