Africa-Press – South-Africa. A deal to sell domestic airline Mango as part of its business rescue proceedings has been cleared by the Supreme Court of Appeal, after it dismissed the latest attempt by Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan to halt it.
The Supreme Court on Thursday (14 March) dismissed Gordhan’s application for leave to appeal with costs, saying that it had no prospect of success.
This marks the latest defeat for the minister in the months-long battle between his department and Mango’s business rescue practitioners (BRPs) over the sale.
Mango was placed in voluntary business rescue on 28 July 2021, with the BRPs appointed in August of that year.
As part of the business rescue plan, the government, through the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE), wanted to dispose of its shareholding in the group and have the airline snapped up by private investors.
However, when an investor was found – later revealed to be Ubuntu Air Services – Gordhan sought to halt the deal on the grounds that he had not been given enough information to approve the deal.
In the Mango deal, the minister was seeking a detailed business plan for the airline, as well as details on foreign ownership, among other information.
The BRPs argued against this, saying that should the deal proceed, the new business would be in direct competition with South African Airways, and giving access to Mango’s business plan would put it at a disadvantage.
The matter eventually ended up in court, with the BRPs trying to get a court order compelling Gordhan to either approve the deal or reject it so that Mango could be either rescued or wound down.
When the courts ordered Gordhan to make a decision within 30 days, the minister took the matter on appeal, which he lost. He then took it to the Supreme Court of Appeal, which he again lost.
The loss at the SCA follows the South African Airlines deal with the consortium Takatso also falling through this month, and the loss-making airline remaining 100% on the government’s books.
Ironically, Gordhan was accused by the portfolio committee on public enterprise of not providing enough information on the SAA deal – a position he defended vociferously and in contrast to the open books he demanded in the Mango deal.
In the BRP’s latest update on Mango’s business rescue, they expressed that there is a reasonable prospect of rescuing the company. However, failing to move ahead with the transaction would likely be wound down and liquidated.
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