Delayed SAA financial report frustrates committee
The standing committee on finance is growing impatient with delays by SAA to table its audited financial statements in Parliament.
|||Cape Town - The standing committee on finance is growing impatient with delays by SAA to table its audited financial statements in Parliament.
In its report on the budget, the committee said SAA and National Treasury must provide reasons for the delay.
It has been close to a year since SAA has been postponing the tabling of its audited financial statements.
This is pending the R5 billion guarantee it requested from the Treasury.
However, the Treasury has not been budging on the bailout after it indicated it would not easily bail out state-owned entities (SOEs).
Chairman of the standing committee Yunus Carrim said yesterday Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan has asked for another extension to submit the SAA annual report.
“The minister has sought for an extension from the Speaker until the end of July in terms of the Public Finance Management Act to submit the SAA annual report and financial statements.”
Carrim said they would meet the Treasury and SAA in August on the matter.
In the report, the committee said it wanted to consider the reports of SAA as a matter of urgency.
The committee wanted the documents to be made available by the end of the month for consideration.
However, the committee would now meet the Treasury and national carrier in the next few weeks in Parliament.
MPs have said they had hoped that the national carrier would improve its financial performance under the Treasury.
The government has spoken strongly against SOEs requiring bailout.
It has said it would not allow the state entities to continue to seek financial support and they must become financially viable.
The financial support SAA requires would allow it to operate as a going concern.
The government has proposed the merger of SAA with SA Express and Mango to create efficiency in the airline and cut costs.
The standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) was told a few weeks ago that discussions on the merger of the three airlines were going well.
SA Express told Scopa these discussions could be concluded soon.
Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa is leading a team looking at this matter and the review of all SOEs.
CAPE TIMES