The DPE has said it has noted “with great disappointment” the final liquidation order granted by the South Gauteng High Court on Wednesday, September 14, placing SA Express in final liquidation. And the DPE still hopes that the High Court proceedings will take place to bring to book those responsible for corruption and fraud at the airline. 

“The department sympathises with the employees of the regional airline, who were not able to receive any compensation after years of working at SA Express,” the statement from the Department of Public Enterprises said, outlining fraud and corruption as major contributors to the demise of a once-proud regional carrier.

The liquidation of the airline was a result of many factors, including years of bad management, State capture and corruption, exacerbated by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global aviation market. There was an initial attempt at Business Rescue, and a provisional liquidation was sought. Then, a drawn-out process began in which bidders were sought and provisional liquidation was held off many times over. But none of a series of bids came to fruition.

The department said in the report that it believed the liquidation brought into stark reality the impact of State capture, corruption and bad management in the country’s State-owned enterprises, especially the devastating consequence on the livelihoods of employees of the regional airline. It went on to outline the evidence of corruption and fraud inside SA Express that had emerged at the Zondo Commission, including the awarding of a contract by North West Province that was never fulfilled but was paid for by the Province.

“The Judicial Commission of Inquiry into State Capture Part 1 report – released earlier this year by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo – on SA Express detailed evidence of deep-rooted corruption and fraud at the regional airline.

“There is evidence that public funds were syphoned out of the North West government’s coffers to various individuals and organs of State,” the department said. The department said in 2019, a criminal investigation was under way and High Court litigation had been instituted, but it noted that the criminal process had not gained any substantial momentum.

The department said it had urged law enforcement agencies to speed up investigations into the allegations of corruption and fraud and bring to book those responsible for the damage.