Former SA Post Office (SAPO) CEO Mark Barnes’ proposal to save the now-bankrupt state-owned enterprise (SOE) and turn it into a national treasure still stands, reports Mybroadband.

As previously reported, SAPO was placed under provisional liquidation earlier this year for failing to settle its enormous debt.

The enterprise is technically insolvent and has lost money since 2013. It has been forced to close branches across the country for years and has had to cut thousands of jobs.

‘According to its most recent financial statements for the 2021/22 year to end-March 2022, it owed more than R4.4bn to creditors, and its debt exceeded its assets by R4bn,’ Business Day reported.

However, Barnes and an unnamed consortium offered to buy a majority stake between 60% and 75% in 2021 to save the struggling enterprise.

His offer was dismissed, and in February 2022, Barnes released the proposal he submitted to the Communications and Digital Technologies Minister at the time.

Barnes has said that SAPO has ‘commercially irreplaceable infrastructure’ and privatising the enterprise would be ‘fundamentally wrong and inappropriate’.

He specified that his offer only stands if it is overseen with proper due diligence by the Auditor-General and he is given three months to come up with the capital.

Full Mybroadband report