Aurora directors face R1.7bn civil claims

One of the liquidators, Johan Engelbrecht, said Pamodzi Gold - the original owners of Orkney and Grootvlei mines - plans to lodge a R1.7bn claim against Aurora, according to a report in The Times. Aurora, run by President Jacob Zuma's legal adviser, Michael Hulley, his nephew Khulubuse Zuma, Nelson Mandela's grandson, Zondwa Mandela, and Thulani Ngubane, has been in the news for withholding the salaries of its miners and the systematic stripping of its assets. There are also claims of unauthorised selling of mining equipment, unlawful destruction of the mining assets and contravention of various laws and statutory regulations. The four directors were the subject of an insolvency inquiry in terms of sections 417 and 418 of the Companies Act for the alleged mismanagement of Pamodzi's mines in Orkney and Springs. Aurora has been liquidated and faces several claims, including one for R4.6m by trade union Solidarity for salaries that were not paid at the former Pamodzi mines. Since the directors were summonsed, they have snubbed the insolvency hearing, citing various reasons for their absence. Full report in The Times