Trade union Solidarity has welcomed the sequestration of former Aurora director Khulubuse Zuma.

Solidarity general secretary Gideon du Plessis said on Friday that the Durban High Court sequestrated Zuma on January 16 2019 after he did not comply with a repayment agreement with liquidators.

“This means that justice will finally prevail for the 5‚300 Aurora employees who lost their jobs after Aurora destroyed the Pamodzi mines that were temporarily placed under their supervision by the Pamodzi liquidators in 2009-2010‚ and after Aurora also did not pay the employees’ salaries for a period of eight months.”

In August 2018‚ 300 of 5‚300 Aurora ex-employees received their first payday after an eight-year legal battle against the former mine directors.

Aurora was liquidated in October 2010. The Pretoria High Court found the Aurora directors guilty in their personal capacity on June 25 2015.

Du Plessis previously claimed that between 2009 and 2010 the directors inflicted R1.7bn in damages on the mine’s assets and sold R122m in gold.

He added that Zuma’s business interests from September 2009‚ when he was appointed director of Aurora‚ until the sequestration may now be investigated.

“Hopefully this investigation will reveal what happened to the approximately R170m that disappeared at the mines and also what Zuma’s business interests in Africa was or is. The investigation will also determine whether Zuma has any interests in Dubai.”

Du Plessis said Zuma’s possessions would be auctioned to recover money to pay former Aurora employees’ outstanding salaries.

The sequestration application for former Aurora director and Nelson Mandela’s grandchild Zondwa Mandela will be heard in February. Sequestration applications are being finalised for other former Aurora directors Fazel and Solly Bhana.

- TMG Digital.