Solidarity trade union will this week, along with the liquidators of Pamodzi Gold and others, proceed with plans to sue the directors of Aurora Empowerment Systems in their personal capacity to recover money owed to workers and others.
If the application, in terms of section 424 of the Companies Act, is successful it means the homes, cars and other assets of Khulubuse Zuma (President Jacob Zuma’s nephew), Zondwa Mandela (the grandson of former president Nelson Mandela) and other directors of Aurora as well as Bhana Consultants, could be seized.
Gideon du Plessis, the deputy general secretary of Solidarity, said on Thursday that the first legal step would be taken this week.
“We will approach the high court to ask that all directors be made personally liable for money owed, due to their reckless and gross mismanagement” of the Orkney and Grootvlei mines.
Du Plessis said the directors would be sued in their personal capacity and if they did not pay then their assets would be seized.
Johan Engelbrecht, the liquidator of Pamodzi Gold, said personal liability was not only limited to directors, but also to others who had knowledge of reckless management.
“We are casting the net wide,” he added.
Engelbrecht said the 424 application would be finalised this coming week. But he declined to give further details until the papers were issued.
He said this action was being taken now following information that was gathered during the liquidation enquiry into Pamodzi.
Du Plessis said the action, which will hopefully recover R10 million in unpaid wages for over 5 000 workers at the two mines, could not have been instituted earlier as Aurora Empowerment Systems was insolvent and had no assets.
“It never had any assets or cash. It was technically insolvent from day one.”
He added that when Aurora was chosen as the preferred bidder to take over the running of the two mines, it initially generated income from the sale of gold, which the directors pocketed, not paying staff or creditors. They later stripped the mine of its equipment.
“They made R260m out of a business they never owned,” Du Plessis said.
The cost to replace the missing equipment and damaged infrastructure in order for the mines to become operational again is estimated at R1.7 billion.
Meanwhile in Durban last week, Khulubuse Zuma’s assets were sold by auction to pay the R10m debt owed to the security company.
The Mercury newspaper reported that the auctioned items included three BMW cars and household furniture.
Zuma’s 3 Series BMW fetched R15 500, his BMW 775i was sold for R88 000, and a 5 Series BMW fetched R14 700. A sound system was sold for R30 000 and items included a microwave oven, bar stools, a double-door fridge, washing machine, a dining table and chairs, and a leather lounge suite. According to the newspaper, all the auctioned items came to about R160 000.
Nazeem Majiet from the claims division at the South African Board for Sheriffs, said the sheriff should wait for the attorney to have the relevant court to re-issue the court order with the alleged new address.
The sheriff can only then attach the other property providing that it is in his jurisdiction, if in another jurisdiction the court order will have to be attended by another sheriff where the property is situated, he added.