The SA Post Office has requested a R3.8 billion bailout from Treasury. Picture:Bongiwe Mchunu/IndependentNewspapers
The Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies has sounded alarm bells at the leadership failures at the South African Post Office (Sapo).
Members of the committee said on Wednesday that they were also unhappy about the unexplained departure of the previous Sapo chief executive, Nomkhita Mona.
The committee is also unhappy by the perceived lack of urgency and proactiveness on the part of the Business Rescue Practitioners (BRP) to present to the committee viable alternatives to the day zero scenario the Post Office laid out.
Khusela Diko, the portfolio committee chairperson, said: “The alarmist announcement of ‘day zero’ made at such extremely short notice is gravely unfortunate and can only be read against what seems to be a lacklustre attitude by the BRPs in the turnaround of the Sapo”.
The Post Office said on Tuesday that it will run out of money by October and will be forced into liquidation unless it gets a R3.8-billion government bailout or guarantee.
In 2023, Sapo received the full R2.4 billion funding allocation from the National Treasury.
In an update on progress that has been made in the process, joint BRPs, Anoosh Rooplal and Juanito Damons said a formal application for the R3.8 billion in funding for the Sapo from National Treasury has been submitted.
“While acknowledging the significant work done to date by the BRPs, the portfolio committee believes there is room for a more aggressive and innovative approach to improving the fortunes of the ailing state entity,” said Diko.
The BRPs had a mandate to stabilise and restore the Post Office to solvency and liquidity. The committee criticised the lack of a coherent plan by the BRPs’ to protect current and find new revenue streams for the Post Office.
“The committee has requested a detailed and time-bound strategy on the envisaged turnaround of the post office, beyond expenditure cuts, most notably reduction of the labour force and branch network to future-proofing Sapo and truly positioning the entity as the Post Office of the future,” Diko said.
Finally, the committee called on the department and Sapo to intensify their engagements with their counterparts in government to enhance cooperation and collaboration and expand government-to-government business directed to Sapo in their areas of operation.
The hope is that Sapo can leverage its strategic assets, especially its extensive property portfolio to help it regain financial solvency.
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