Parliament, Friday, 15 May 2020 – The Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) has instructed the South African Airways (SAA) business rescue practitioners to set a date for the finalisation of the business rescue plan for SAA.
The business rescue practitioners have been given 25 days to produces a business rescue plan for the airline. Five months have passed and the practitioners have not tabled a finalised plan. Scopa was this evening, during its meeting, furnished with a draft business rescue plan. The late submission of this plan disadvantaged the committee and it could not engage the draft plan. The committee will be forced to set the date for the practitioners if they fail to set a date to finalise the plan themselves.
Scopa also wants a full schedule of the account of the fees for the business rescue practitioners, advisers and all the practitioners involved. It is important that the country is aware of how much this business rescue process has cost the fiscus. The committee has also requested the Department of Public Enterprises to provide a list of these cost-cutting measures that the business rescue practitioner allege to have done. The committee would like to see whether these have been done correctly.
The committee will also compile a list of questions from all the members in relation to the issue of SAA and the business rescue practitioners, which should be responded to by Tuesday, 26 May 2020.
The committee has also resolved to schedule a meeting with South African Express in the next 14 days. South African Express has an obligation to account for what is happening at the airline as taxpayers’ money is involved.
Furthermore, Scopa believes that there is a need to conduct a proper analysis in order to ascertain where and when these challenges at SAA started. It is important for all who are responsible for the collapse of the airline to face consequences.
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON FOR SCOPA, MR MKHULEKO HLENGWA.
For media enquiries, please contact the Committee’s Media Officer:
Name: Ms Faith Ndenze
Parliamentary Communication Services
Tel: 021 403 8062
Cell: 081 377 0686
Email: fndenze@parliament.gov.za
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