The North West Provincial Legislature Portfolio Committee on Community Safety and Transport Management has called on relevant government departments to intervene in the ongoing legal battles between the North West Transport Investment (NTI) and its former Business Rescue Practitioner Thomas Sammons, whose repeated appeals have stalled progress at the bus company.
The committees concern come after 14 employees at the entity reportedly committed suicide since last year due to unpaid salaries. The committee has now called on Premier Lazarus Mokgosi, Community Safety and Transport Management MEC, Wessels Morweng, and Treasury MEC Kenetswe Mosenogi, to intervene in the matter.
The Chairperson of the committee, Freddy Sonakile, told YOU FM Newshour that the latest post-mortem reports conducted on the workers has revealed that some might have committed suicide due to stress related to non-payment of their salaries at work.
“It seems according to the report of the current Business Rescue Practitioner Mahomed Tayob that some of the employees started committing suicide from last year because these workers haven’t been paid since last year despite promises to pay them. Families are suffering, homes are being repossessed, and in some cases, workers have reportedly died of depression, while a legal impasse continues to drag on,” stated Sonakile.
He vowed that they are going to allow one person known as Sammons to hold the entire province at ransom.
He also accused him of refusing to account to the main shareholder of the entity, which is the North West Provincial Government.
“This legal circus cannot continue while workers and their families bear the brunt of the crisis. We insist that urgent measures must be facilitated to ensure that salaries are paid without further delay, irrespective of the ongoing court processes. Workers continue to serve the public, and their dignity must be restored,” said Sonakile.
Furthermore, Sonakile said that the committee has resolved to call Mokgosi, together with Morweng, and Mosenogi, to amongst others urgently meet with NTI’s acting CEO, Dr Ntlhopeng Dikobe and Tayob, to devise immediate strategies that will allow salary payments to be paid while the legal case continues.
The committee also noted that workers cannot remain the collateral damage of protracted litigation and government indecision.
“We are going to receive the latest report from the entity next month. But I have to say that the acting CEO and the current BRP have really tried and done their best. The only thing is that when they came it was after the NTI removed the former BRP through the court processes, but he has been appealing the court decision which is now at the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein,” said Sonakile.
The chairperson further called on the provincial government to vigorously defend the current business rescue process in the courts, pursue cost orders against Sammons to deter further frivolous appeals, and demonstrate its seriousness by providing full support to the workers during this transition period.
Sonakile said that the committee will also engage with the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to establish progress on the case it previously referred to regarding NTI’s affairs.
“I have engaged the SIU today, and they told me that they have had an engagement with the current BRP last week to get some of the records. Remember he was able to access the system of the entity and retrieve some of the records, so we are waiting for the president to sign a proclamation to investigate the matter,” concluded Sonakile.
