Between the Chains
SIKONATHI MANTSHANTSHA: Getting wings back again
Now that we know how much of a needless cash drain the state’s misadventure in business has been, let’s try salvage some value for the citizens on whose behalf government manages companies. Of all the state-owned companies, the airlines have been a particular waste of money and talent.Finance minister Pravin Gordhan has acknowledged this. He has also pledged to halt the flood. This will be done by offering private investors equity stakes in SA Airways (SAA), which includes Mango , and in SA Express . But first government wants to merge these into a single entity. This, in my opinion, is a mistake.There is no need to merge SA Express into SAA and Mango. That would only create another huge, unwieldy and complex business that would be as disastrous as SAA is right now.Correctly capitalised, each of these entities can stand on its own two feet. But they have to be managed by people who have the correct skills and incentives to manage them for profit.Other business people have shown it i...
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