Final order on Aurora liquidation expected by 1 November
The liquidation of Kaunda Global Mining Resources, trading as Aurora Gold East Rand and Aurora Gold Orkney, is expected to be confirmed on 1 November. On the same day, the sole director of this company, Zondwa Mandela, has to testify in terms of sections 417 and 418 of the Companies Act before the Master of the North Gauteng High Court regarding Pamodzi Gold's insolvency, trade union Solidarity said today.
Solidarity is currently involved in urgent consultations with the newly appointed liquidators of Kaunda. The purpose of the consultations is to ensure that a parallel insolvency enquiry is scheduled to determine what has become of the thousands of rand deducted from former Aurora employees' salaries.
According to Gideon du Plessis, Mandela is the only director of Kaunda, the company through which Aurora appointed the employees. "Mandela has to explain during the insolvency questioning, which is likely to follow on the liquidation order, to account for the thousands of rand deducted from thousands of former Aurora employees' salaries," explained Du Plessis.
Solidarity lodged a first liquidation application amounting to R3,1 million against Aurora in May of this year. The liquidation case was postponed until October, after Aurora had indicated long after the deadline that it would oppose the application. Meanwhile, the High Court has found in favour of another of Aurora's creditors, Nelesco, who had lodged a liquidation application of R1,3 million against Aurora earlier, and approved a provisional liquidation order. Solidarity's liquidation application, which would have come before the North Gauteng High Court on 3 October, was consequently struck off the role.
"Though it is unlikely that the former Aurora employees will receive their outstanding salaries, we hope that the corporative veil will eventually be lifted through the enquiry in terms of the Companies Act and the insolvency enquiry to ensure the individuals responsible for the destruction are taken to task," said Du Plessis. "It is vital that the Aurora crisis is never repeated in South Africa," he added.
Statement issued by Gideon du Plessis, Deputy General Secretary: Solidarity, October 3 2011
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