Opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), has again called for the removal of South African Airways (SAA) chairperson Dudu Myeni, as it believes the airline could be declared insolvent this week, owing to a decision by CitiBank in December to cancel its R250-million short-term credit facility.

The party said in a statement that CitiBank’s decision to refuse to renew the facility left the already cash-strapped airline in a very precarious position and, without further government guarantees, rendered the airline “essentially cashless”.

“This latest disaster, which follows the announcement that Myeni is being investigated by the Hawks for corruption, further underscores the need for her to be removed as a matter of urgency.

“It is during Myeni’s tenure that SAA has become the laughing stock of the aviation community, a far cry from its lofty heights of being one of the world’s leading airlines,” the DA said in a statement.

It further believed that the airline’s current financial position could have been avoided if SAA had managed to conclude an equity partnership agreement with Emirates, estimated to be worth more than R2-billion.

“But the deal did not materialise, having been allegedly deliberately scuppered by Myeni under suspicious circumstances.

“The biggest question now is how Myeni can still be in her position given all the scandals and mismanagement at the airline.  An expert in the aviation industry, not a [President Jacob] Zuma acolyte, must be employed to oversee the turnaround of the airline,” the party argued.

Meanwhile, the opposition party lauded Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan who it said has shown “tremendous leadership” by ensuring that the Airbus swap agreement approved in July last year was completed.

“The Minister must continue to take a stand against Myeni and refuse to offer any more government guarantees until she has been replaced.

“We cannot allow State-owned enterprises to be run into the ground as a result of the President’s policy of appointing friends, cadres and political allies – without the requisite skills and experience – to senior management positions,” it added.