The DA says it remains sceptical whether the newly-appointed interim chairperson of the South African Airways (SAA) board, Derek Hanekom, will be able to address the existing impasse with SAA’s equity partner, Takatso Consortium, without asking taxpayers for billions more in bailouts.
Public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan on Monday announced the appointment of an interim eight-member board of SAA, chaired by former tourism minister Hanekom.
Gordhan said the interim board, appointed effective from Saturday, April 15, will serve until the introduction of strategic equity partner Takatso Consortium. The consortium is poised to acquire a 51% majority stake in SAA, with the transaction now undergoing regulatory review.
“When the Takatso deal was first announced by the government in June 2021, Takatso made an undertaking to invest R3bn in SAA over three years. Almost two years have elapsed but the promised equity injection by Takatso is yet to materialise.
“It’s as if Takatso wants the taxpayer to foot all the recapitalisation costs of SAA and they just reap the benefits through their 51% stake,” said DA shadow minister of public enterprises Ghaleb Cachalia.
He said changing board appointments frequently did not address the elephant in the room. Namely, at what point will Takatso fulfil its end of the business agreement and start fulfilling its responsibilities as the largest equity partner in SAA.
“The whole purpose of the state ceding a majority stake in SAA was so that the fiscus is freed from the constant requests for bailouts which had become frequent and unsustainable. Two years later, it appears Takatso still wants to keep the bailout taps open,” he said.
Cachalia said SAA was playing in an increasingly competitive environment and the longer it took to get the Takatso deal going — while busy changing the deck chairs — this would increase the chances of failure and more bailouts from a fiscus that was already stretched to the limit.
“While Hanekom, a former minister of tourism, has been characterised by Gordhan as having a deep understanding of the aviation industry’s crucial role in promoting travel and economic growth, he knows next to nothing about the aviation industry.
Cachalia said Hanekom’s appointment was yet another example of the ANC’s cadre deployment.
“One would have expected Gordhan to consider appointing someone with aviation expertise to oversee SAA’s transition period and implementation of the public/private partnership with the Takatso Consortium,” said Cachalia.
Gordhan said the board’s exceptional experience and expertise would guide the airline towards a prosperous future in collaboration with the Takatso Consortium.
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Hanekom’s appointment at SAA not addressing impasse with Takatso: DA
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The DA says it remains sceptical whether the newly-appointed interim chairperson of the South African Airways (SAA) board, Derek Hanekom, will be able to address the existing impasse with SAA’s equity partner, Takatso Consortium, without asking taxpayers for billions more in bailouts.
Public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan on Monday announced the appointment of an interim eight-member board of SAA, chaired by former tourism minister Hanekom.
Gordhan said the interim board, appointed effective from Saturday, April 15, will serve until the introduction of strategic equity partner Takatso Consortium. The consortium is poised to acquire a 51% majority stake in SAA, with the transaction now undergoing regulatory review.
“When the Takatso deal was first announced by the government in June 2021, Takatso made an undertaking to invest R3bn in SAA over three years. Almost two years have elapsed but the promised equity injection by Takatso is yet to materialise.
“It’s as if Takatso wants the taxpayer to foot all the recapitalisation costs of SAA and they just reap the benefits through their 51% stake,” said DA shadow minister of public enterprises Ghaleb Cachalia.
He said changing board appointments frequently did not address the elephant in the room. Namely, at what point will Takatso fulfil its end of the business agreement and start fulfilling its responsibilities as the largest equity partner in SAA.
“The whole purpose of the state ceding a majority stake in SAA was so that the fiscus is freed from the constant requests for bailouts which had become frequent and unsustainable. Two years later, it appears Takatso still wants to keep the bailout taps open,” he said.
Cachalia said SAA was playing in an increasingly competitive environment and the longer it took to get the Takatso deal going — while busy changing the deck chairs — this would increase the chances of failure and more bailouts from a fiscus that was already stretched to the limit.
“While Hanekom, a former minister of tourism, has been characterised by Gordhan as having a deep understanding of the aviation industry’s crucial role in promoting travel and economic growth, he knows next to nothing about the aviation industry.
Cachalia said Hanekom’s appointment was yet another example of the ANC’s cadre deployment.
“One would have expected Gordhan to consider appointing someone with aviation expertise to oversee SAA’s transition period and implementation of the public/private partnership with the Takatso Consortium,” said Cachalia.
Gordhan said the board’s exceptional experience and expertise would guide the airline towards a prosperous future in collaboration with the Takatso Consortium.
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