Picture: The NTI workers in large numbers demanding their salaries
By OBAKENG MAJE
The disconsolate workers of a parastatal company, North West Transport Investments said they are ‘fed up’ with the ill-treatment they continue to receive from the Business Rescue Practitioner (BRP). Yesterday, the deconsolidated workers barricaded the entrance of the North West Provincial Legislature (NWPL) with buses demanding their salaries.
One of the workers who refused to be named for fear of reprisal said, they have not been paid for three months and this is uncalled for. He said they are now forced to bear the brunt in a prolonged legal battle between the BRP and the North West Community Safety and Transport Management.
This comes after the North West Community Safety and Transport Management approached the court in a quest to terminate the BRP contract.
“It is really unfair that we are caught between the department and the BRP squabbles. We were here two weeks ago to protest and were promised that our salaries will be paid on 26 May 2023. However, nothing of that matter materialised. Now, we are back here again and it seems there is no solution.
“The department is telling us about the BRP, but we are sick and tired of these shenanigans. We want to meet the North West MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Sello Lehari, because he told us that they cannot pay us, while the BRP is still there,” he said.
Another worker shared the same sentiments.
“As I’m talking right now, there is a crisis after one of our workers passed away. His family is struggling to make ends meet and does not have money to bury him. As his colleagues, we are disheartened because we want to donate to his family, but we cannot do that because we do not have money.
“So, what are we supposed to do in this kind of situation? We are also tired of living in squalor, while we are working. We left our wives and kids at home hungry, while we came to seek for answers. We don’t have anything, we can’t even buy electricity,” he said.
Meanwhile, the acting Head of the Department, Mpho Maleme said: “We blame the BRP for diverting funds, instead of paying its workers. In terms of Section 40 of 140 of the company’s Act, the BRP has all powers within the NTI. We promised the employees that we would give them their money, which we did.
“The challenge is that, immediately when the money was deposited into the account, the BRP moved the money. He then sent a very long message telling us that he is not going to pay the employees, but he is going to pay other creditors. We then wrote a letter to him to say that the employees are also special creditors. He chose who he wanted to pay and unfortunately, we did not even have any powers to do anything within the account of NTI because of Section 140 of the company’s act. However, we are dealing with this challenge.”
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