From Solidarity
Trade union Solidarity said today that the irresponsible pursuit of black economic empowerment targets and the idea to develop black industrialists at all costs have plunged the South African Airways (SAA) and the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) further into difficulties.
According to Dr Eugene Brink, senior researcher at the Solidarity Research Institute, SAA Chairperson Dudu Myeni announced earlier that SAA wanted to review its current agreement with the European company Airbus. In addition, he wants to make use of an unknown middleman who would buy these aeroplanes on behalf of the airline, and who would then supply the aeroplanes to SAA.
Apart from the fact that the original agreement with Airbus will not be complied with, this review would also cost tax payers R1.5 billion and add unnecessary costs. “This announcement followed after Myeni’s statement earlier this year that by 2018, SAA wants to spend 50% of its procurement budget of R20 billion on black industrialists and black economic empowerment. This is spending for the sake of spending and not aimed at converting a struggling airline into a profitable and prosperous enterprise,” Brink explained.
The Prasa scandal is starting to peak after it has emerged that this institution wants to have its tender with Swifambo Holdings declared invalid after this black economic empowerment consortium earlier had been granted the tender in a controversial manner. The tender process followed apparently did not meet the required criteria.
“Meanwhile, Prasa has granted a tender to a black economic empowerment consortium, whose only clients are Transnet and Prasa, to supply the by now controversial Vossloh Espana locomotives to this parastatal at a price, merely acting as middleman in the transaction,” Brink said.
“This ill-considered practice smacks of parastatals that are prepared to compromise the sustainability of their institutions and to squander tax money for the sake of developing and enriching black industrialists merely acting as middlemen,” Brink explained.
