The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) welcomes the decision by the Constitutional Court to deny the Northwest Transport Investment (NTI) business rescue practitioner (BRP), Thomas Hendrick Samson, leave to appeal directly to it.

Samson was appointed NTI’s BRP in 2022, when the state-owned bus operator was placed under business rescue following years of financial mismanagement and inadequate oversight by the North West and Gauteng Provincial Governments, under whose joint authority it falls. However, it quickly became apparent that Samson had no interest in turning the entity around and making it sustainable as he failed to account for funds government injected into the company and did not pay workers’ salaries for months on end.

COSATU Affiliate, the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU), petitioned the High Court to have Samson removed as the NTI BRP. In November 2024, the High Court ruled in SATAWU’s favour and ordered Samson’s removal. But instead of bowing out gracefully, Samson appealed the ruling, once again wasting taxpayers’ money meant to rescue NTI for his personal crusade.

In late 2025, SATAWU and its members were vindicated when the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria ruled that Samson was not fit to hold office and ordered him to vacate his role as BRP of NTI. The victory was bittersweet because workers faced the bleakest Christmas having gone without salaries for a heartbreaking 14 months. COSATU and SATAWU were forced to intervene and engage NTI management, the two provincial governments and Minister of Transport, Barbara Creecy.   

Workers were ultimately paid their November and December salaries in early January 2026. An undertaking to pay workers’ outstanding salaries, as well as third-party deductions including taxes, pension and medical aid funds was made in February.  

Meantime, Samson approached the Constitutional Court directly for leave to appeal his removal by the High Court in Pretoria. COSATU is pleased that the apex court denied the leave to appeal and slapped Samson with costs.

In recent times COSATU has noted a worrying trend of BRPs going rogue and holding companies they are meant to turnaround hostage, while siphoning off their funds. The Federation has consequently called for discussion at Nedlac regarding the tightening of business rescue processes.

COSATU reiterates its call for NTI, the North West and Gauteng Provincial Governments with the support of the National Department of Transport, to put a coherent turnaround plan in place to return the company to sustainability and profitability, and by so doing enable it to fulfil its contractual obligations to its employees as well as to the working-class communities it services.   

Issued by COSATU