“We’re very excited about their dismissal and the fact they’ve been ordered to vacate the premises.”
|||Good riddance, but long overdue. That’s how the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) on Friday described the news that Aurora Empowerment Systems’s contract to run the stalled Orkney and Grootvlei mines had been terminated.
“We’re very excited about their dismissal and the fact they’ve been ordered to vacate the premises and to restore mining operations at both Grootvlei, in Springs, and Orkney in the Free State, to what they were before Aurora took over,” spokesman Lesiba Seshoka told the Saturday Star.
The provisional liquidators of Pamodzi Gold yesterday terminated Aurora’s interim trading contract and ordered the controversial, politically connected company, to restore mining operations at the mines to what they were before it started running them.
Aurora was also told it had until Monday to vacate the premises of both mines and not to strip any more assets.
Seshoka said the union was disappointed that Aurora’s exit had taken two years to resolve.
“We’re disappointed it took so long. For two years, we danced on one spot. Aurora must be blacklisted so they find no space in the mining industry because they have no interest in mining – their interest is in scrap.”
Thabang Funde, a worker at Grootvlei mine, said: “They have not been a good company, I’m glad they are out.”
Charlotte Lightbody, whose husband Gawie worked on the care-and-maintenance team and who is owed more than R150 000 in unpaid salaries and other benefits, was also relieved – but has her concerns.
“It’s good they’re gone, but what does this mean for us and all the money they owe us? My husband has just been diagnosed this week with throat cancer again and how will I try to find work while I care for him? Aurora will go somewhere else and tear the lives of other families apart like they’ve done with us.”
Solidarity said it regarded the liquidators’ decision as the second victory this week in the Aurora saga after two of the liquidators, Enver Motala and Gavin Gainsford were fired earlier this week.
Seshoka added: “This tells us quite a story. It’s quite obvious that those who protected them (Aurora) are now gone, so they are also gone.”
Sheshile Ngubane, commercial director of Aurora Empowerment Systems, confirmed he had just received an e-mail from the liquidators informing them of the decision.
“This is putting our Chinese investors into a very difficult situation,” he said, referring to the company’s potential Chinese investor, Shandong Gold.
Shandong arrived in South Africa this week to assess Pamodzi’s Grootvlei and Orkney operations and decide whether it would fund the politically-connected Aurora’s bid to buy the mines.
“We don’t see the Chinese going ahead with the deal,” he said.
The remaining liquidators appointed a security company to immediately take over to ensure Aurora did not strip assets or remove documents, Du Plessis said.
Aurora is not only responsible for the massive social crisis which impoverished more than 40 000 people, but it also stripped the mining asset of all value and caused South Africa – as an investment possibility for offshore investors – immeasurable damage,” Du Plessis said. - Saturday Star
Source: http://www.iol.co.za/aurora-good-riddance-num-1.1075287
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