Naye Lupondwana is arguably the most informed, smartest and eloquent presenter on SA FM. It saddens me that he only hosts a weekly nighttime two-hour show on the station — which is Facts Of Faith on Sundays from 7 to 9.

I thought that the station would have long given him a weekday primetime show since he did sterling work when he stood in for the late Rowena Baird on the weekday mid-morning show some years ago.

A few years ago, he hosted a highly engaging show called The HeadSpace. It aired from Monday to Thursday evenings from 10 till midnight but was replaced by Patricia Ntuli.

 

 

It surprises me how a show that sparked a lot of debates, had a host with great interviewing skills, and the like — was replaced by the current one. Patricia is not my cup of tea and I think the quality of the show has deteriorated in terms of content and presentation.

I sometimes wonder if the reason he’s constantly short-changed by the station is that his great command of the English language and accent — could alienate listeners with limited English and those who struggle to follow “sophisticated” accents.

Some say that he is faking his American accent but I remember one listener calling into the show he was hosting and asked why he spoke the way he did. He answered that it was because he watched a lot of television. But the listener wasn’t having it as she responded that she also consumed much television but didn’t adopt an accent. Naye then hung up on her.