Related Articles
Top Stories
Feb 13 2012 12:15
Miner Xstrata says it has brought forward maintenance on two furnaces to assist Eskom to save power.
Feb 13 2012 10:43
Although jobs were created, the economy is still 420 000 jobs short of the peak employment level before the 2009 global financial crisis, says Adcorp.
Feb 13 2012 07:58
Greek lawmakers have approved a new round of drastic austerity measures after a long day of street battles between police and protesters left dozens injured.
Johannesburg - The South African Post Office is facing a lawsuit of more than R1.3bn for breach of a contract entered into by former chief executive Maanda Manyatshe, who is also suing the entity for more than R200m for defamation.
Nasasa Cellular, a company run by empowerment businessman Sothomela Ndukwana, filed papers in the Pretoria High Court demanding R1.32bn from the post office.
Nasasa had in 2004 entered into an agreement with the post office for exclusive rights to sell cellphones and airtime to the public through the post office's 2 500 outlets. The contract was to have run for an initial period of five years, but court documents allege that the post office never made good on the deal.
Nasasa has already won a round in the legal battle. It launched an application in January for an order declaring that the agreement entered into in 2004 was valid and binding.
The order also expressly declared that the post office was in breach of its obligations to Nasasa and instructed the state-owned company to fulfil its promise.
The post office's group executive for corporate services, Twiggs Xiphu, said the organisation would defend itself against the lawsuit.
Failed to appeal
The judge presiding in the earlier court application said he had found the post office's behaviour "reprehensible and not in accordance with commercial morality".
The post office failed to appeal against the judgment but still did not comply with the order.
This week Nasasa applied to the Pretoria High Court to have the contract cancelled and asked for an order of damages to the tune of R1.32bn.
The breakdown is: net profit before tax had the agreement been implemented at R497 million; liability for fixed expenditure at R114 million; projected sales of R284 million and ongoing revenue over the five-year period after the termination of the agreement by the passing of time arising from the remaining subscriber base at R426 million.
"In the premises, the plaintiff has suffered damages in the aggregate amount of R1 321 014 460," the court papers say.
Nasasa is also pressing the court to force the post office to pay for the legal costs should it succeed in its lawsuit.
Technically insolvent
Should the court find against it, the post office would have to cough up more than 25% of annual revenues, which amounted to R4.9bn last year. This could result in the post office being technically insolvent.
Manyatshe, who left the post office more than two years ago, is demanding R274m in damages for defamation.
He was forced to resign from his position as managing director at mobile telephony company MTN last year after the post office laid criminal charges against him for tender fraud.
Last week, Pretoria High Court Judge Willie Hartzenberg ordered the post office to pay R60 million in damages for a tender it awarded in 2002 despite being alerted to flaws in the tendering process.
Manyatshe's successor Kgotso Mampeule, who pressed charges against his predecessor, was later sacked by Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri. He is also threatening to sue the post office.
Hartzenberg said dishonesty, corruption and fraud plagued the botched tender for a biometric pensions payment system in the North West.
- City Press