Photo by: Duane Daws
Nico Bezuidenhout has been appointed as acting CEO of South African Airways (SAA) to stand in for suspended CEO Monwabisi Kalawe, the airline said on Saturday.
"The SAA board has resolved, in consultation with the shareholder, to appoint Mr. Nico Bezuidenhout as acting SAA chief executive officer, during the absence from the company of Mr. Monwabisi Kalawe," chairperson Dudu Myeni said in a statement.
Mango CEO Bezuidenhout acted in the role before, prior to Kalawe's appointment in April last year.
The Mail & Guardian reported on Friday that Myeni appeared to have disregarded a call from Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown to withdraw Kalawe's suspension.
Brown was quoted as saying she had demanded answers from the SAA board on "why they are not listening to me" and expected Myeni, rumoured to have a close relationship with President Jacob Zuma, to answer her in writing.
According to the report, Myeni described her relationship with Zuma as a friendship and denied this presented a conflict of interest with her role.