In this 11 December 2019 file photo, President Cyril Ramaphosa is seen with Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan at a media briefing at Megawatt Park, where it was said all leave would be cancelled for Eskom executives until a plan to deal with the rolling blackouts is established. Photo: Sebabatso Mosamo/Sunday Times
‘Stinks of corruption’: NUMSA on DPE appointing new SAA Board
NUMSA has accused Pravin Gordhan of single-handedly destroying SAA and other SOE’s and has raised concerns about the new Board.
In this 11 December 2019 file photo, President Cyril Ramaphosa is seen with Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan at a media briefing at Megawatt Park, where it was said all leave would be cancelled for Eskom executives until a plan to deal with the rolling blackouts is established. Photo: Sebabatso Mosamo/Sunday Times
The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) says the decision of the Department of Public Enterprises to appoint a new Board of South African Airways (SAA) stinks of corruption.
DPE Minister Pravin Gordhan announced new Board members on Monday, 17 April, with Derek Hanekom as chairperson.
NUMSA WEIGHS IN ON SAA BOARD
NUMSA accused Pravin Gordhan of secretly firing the old board of SAA on 14 April and replacing them with new board members the next day.
The union said it is deeply suspicious of the timing of the minister who chose to replace these board members at this time.
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NUMSA spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi-Majola said it is interesting to note that the minister gives no reasons for why the previous board members were fired and what they failed to do to justify their hasty removal.
Hlubi-Majola said among the reasons they say the sudden appointment of the new board members stinks of corruption is because the DPE claims that the people chosen to lead the new board will finalise and hand over the airline to Takatso.
“Why is the old board not doing the handover, and why replace an interim board with another interim board, which will have to be replaced anyway, once the Takatso deal is finalised?,” she asked.
Furthermore, Hlubi-Majola said the SAA audited report ending March 2017 noted that the company’s total assets were valued at R14 594 billion but are currently valued at R3 billion.
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“What happened to all of SAA’s assets? Either these assets were disposed of by the business rescue practitioner or by Pravin Gordhan and the DPE, but we do not know because there are no financial statements,” she said.
GORDHAN ACCUSED OF DESTROYING SOE’S
NUMSA also accused Gordhan of single-handedly destroying State Owned Entities such as SAA, Denel, SA Express, and Eskom and not suffering any consequences for gross mismanagement.
NUMSA said it would write to the portfolio committee chairperson on Public Enterprises to demand they act quickly and set up the meeting with the former Director-General of the DPE.
“The minister must explain himself publicly on all of the allegations made by the DG of corruption. He must disclose once and for all the full details of the Takatso Transaction, including the details of the due diligence process. The entire process must be subjected to public scrutiny, and this must be done before the deal is finalised.”
