The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) announced on Monday that it had applied for leave to appeal the Pretoria High Court judgment, and order, regarding State-owned low-cost airline Mango, that had been handed down, early last month. Mango, part of the South African Airways group, has been under its own business rescue process.
“The intention of this application is to ensure that all aspects of Mango’s business rescue process are transparent, legally sound and in the best interest of the South African public,” stated the DPE. “This is not a stalling tactic or an attempt the undermine the need to bring finality to Mango’s business rescue process.”
On September 6, the Pretoria High Court had ordered Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan to decide on the sale of Mango, as proposed by the airline’s business rescue practitioners (BRPs), within 30 days. The DPE affirmed that its application to appeal this ruling was “consistent” with the legal advice it had been given, regarding the case.
The DPE also affirmed that Gordhan was still waiting for information from the BRPs, which he needed to make his decision. This information was, firstly (in the order given by the DPE), a detailed business plan, to allow the consortium’s viability to be assessed; secondly, “comprehensive due diligence’; and thirdly, details about foreign ownership, to ensure compliance with the country’s laws.