Johannesburg - Former SA Airways (SAA) CEO Khaya Ngqula is
expected to appear in the High Court in Johannesburg on Wednesday for allegedly
misspending sponsorship money during his time at the company.
"The court argument will be centred around whether SAA,
in its haste to sue Mr Ngqula, might have approached the wrong court to deal
with the matter," his spokesperson Louis Seeco said in a statement on
Tuesday.
Ngqula left the company in March 2009.
KPMG conducted a forensic audit following allegations made
largely against Ngqula and in July last year, SAA sued him for R30.8m.
The SAA board sought to recover R27m Ngqula allegedly spent
on sign-on retention bonuses to company employees, in excess of the authority
given to him.
It also sought to recover R3.3m for his hiring of
hospitality suites in various sports stadiums and at least R500 000 he spent on
free junkets, allegedly for his personal friends.
Ngqula allegedly organised overseas trips for friends and
associates to the 2006 Fifa World Cup, the Rugby World Cup in 2007 and the ATP
Tennis Tournament in 2008.