Durban – Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Telecommunications and Postal Services has stepped in to ensure the embattled, cash-strapped SA Post Office keeps afloat.

The committee and Telecommunications and Postal Services Minister Siyabonga Cwele met post office management at the weekend, where they were briefed on the issues plaguing the postal service.

In recent weeks the postal service has been rocked by instability after workers in Gauteng protested when they were paid only half their salaries last Saturday. A full payment was made last Wednesday.

In September, post office management told Parliament that it was losing R100 million a month, and made a net loss of R285m in the first three months of the current financial year.

The post office has requested a government bailout – said to be around a billion rand.

Mmamoloko Kubayi, chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Telecommunications and Postal Services, said the meeting with the post office management went well on Saturday and they were now aware of the challenges facing the organisation.

“There was a gap in leadership because the chief operating officer was acting as the chief executive as well, and because he was ill, he was not at work for a long time. Now that an appointment has been made, there should no longer be any leadership problems,” she said.

Kubayi said they agreed that the postal service needed a bailout.

“But it is not just going to be a blank cheque. They need to implement their turnaround strategy and they need to second someone who has the experience to manage their finances because, to be honest, the post office is not in a good space at the moment,” she said.

The post office was placed under administration last year following a crippling, three-month strike.

Kubayi said the committee was given assurances by officials that they would prioritise the payment of staff.

“The post office workers are ordinary South Africans who, if they do not get paid, are not able to put food on the table. We need to make sure that they are always paid in full, and we are happy with the assurances given to us,” she said.

http://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/billion-rand-bailout-for-post-office-1939290