ANCYL slams Gordhan for interfering at SAA

The ANCYL has blasted Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan. Picture: Reuters

The ANCYL has blasted Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan. Picture: Reuters

Published Jan 20, 2017

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Durban – The ANC Youth League in the eThekwini region has called for Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan’s head for allegedly holding up transformation at South African Airways through political interference.

Addressing the media in Durban on Thursday, ANCYL eThekwini regional secretary Thinta Cibane said it was reflecting the views of top league structures when it says Gordhan “must go with immediate effect”.

“As young people we are going to defend the president because he had realised that there is something wrong with this man (Gordhan). He was right when you look at SAA,” he said.

The youth league’s claim of lack of transformation at SAA came after the ANC Women’s League last week made similar allegations. 

The ANCWL claimed the national carrier was benefiting a few white companies, including one from the US.

The league alleged that the state-owned airline’s board, whose chairperson is Dudu Myeni, a known ally of President Jacob Zuma, could not carry out transformation because of Gordhan’s appointment of his “yes-sir” people to serve on the board.

Cibane said there was hope that the airline would be transformed when it was moved from the Department of Public Enterprises to the National Treasury three years ago.

Cibane said that instead of transforming, SAA had become “a banana republic”.

“Pravin Gordhan is doing nothing to transform that institution. Instead he is continuing on an accumulation path with capitalists he is collaborating with.

“There is nowhere where there is such interference in any state enterprise like we have at SAA,” said Cibane. He alleged that through his self-appointed board members, Gordhan had secured his own interest at SAA.

Cibane said that unlike in other public companies, SAA would award large contracts to white companies.

“It is 23 years into democracy, and 98% of that R24billion is still in the same hands it was during apartheid,” he said.

He called for the employment of more black pilots, as currently “SAA only has four black pilots out of more than 200”.

“Those pilots enjoy benefits even ministers don’t enjoy. When you are a pilot at SAA you are guaranteed that you are rich for life, you fly for free and everything is for free,” said Cibane.

He said that while Gordhan was failing to transform the airline, he was busy accusing his comrades within the ruling party of being corrupt.

“We believe that Gordhan must go, and he must go immediately because SAA is a typical example of why he must go,” he said.

ANCYL eThekwini region spokesperson Thulisa Ndlela said Gordhan was taking the side of monopoly capitalists in a “tug of war” against transformation. “This is why we are of the view, as the ANCYL, that it is not possible for an organisation to refuse transformation.”

National Treasury spokesperson Yolisa Tyantsi said: “They can say whatever they want, but we are not going to comment.”

The Mercury

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