NAFCOC President Gilbert Mosena said his organisation would fight to save Ithala Bank.
Image: Supplied
The embattled Ithala Bank’s fight to survive liquidation by the South African Reserve Bank’s Prudential Authority has received another boost from the oldest black business federation, the National African Federated Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NAFCOC).
Speaking on the sidelines of the four-day conference which is currently under way in Durban, the federation President Gilbert Mosena vowed that his organisation would not allow the death of Ithala, saying they would engage President Cyril Ramaphosa and King Misuzulu kaZwelithini about their plans to save the bank when he meets them at the gala dinner on Friday.
The federation’s conference will culminate in the gala dinner to celebrate its 60th anniversary.
Mosena said they decided to hold the 60th celebration in KwaZulu-Natal because they wanted to lend their support to the king’s fight against the closure of the bank.
“That is why we decided to bring our 60th anniversary celebration, that is why we invited both the king and the president because we want to tell them how we are concerned about the imminent closure of the bank,” said Mosena.
He also stated that Ithala is the last hope of the black people in this country to own a financial institution, therefore, NAFCOC will fight alongside the king and all other stakeholders to prevent the closure.
Mosena said as black businesses, they are still feeling the pain from the takeover of African Bank from their black hands by white-owned banks and would not allow the same thing to happen to Ithala.
Ithala Bank is in a protracted and bruising battle with the Prudential Authority which filed papers in the Pietermaritzburg High Court for its provisional liquidation.
The federation also launched a ‘Buy Black’ campaign where the black middle class would be encouraged to buy from black businesses.
The campaign was endorsed by the former Statistician-General Pali Lehohla, who said it was incomprehensible that black South African households that collectively have an estimated annual spending of R3.6 trillion remain mere consumers without ownership of what they buy.
He said the black middle class is said to be spending R400 billion in white-owned businesses which, if that amount could be spent on black business products, would result in more meaningful black empowerment.
willem.phungula@inl.co.za
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