chinese widow flies in to battle taxi firm  
02 March 2008
 
A Chinese widow has flown to South Africa to take the supplier of 14-seater Inyathi taxis to court to be liquidated because it owes her more than $19-million (about R147,6-million). 

Yan-Ping Ke owns a Chinese company that supplied minibuses and spare parts to China Auto Manufacturers (CAM), which in turn sells these taxis, known as CAM Inyathis, in South Africa. If she is successful in her Johannesburg High Court application her attorney, Zehir Omar, said this would mean the end of supply of all parts for the Inyathi taxis that have recently flooded the public transport market.

In court papers she said CAM spent all the money she is owed on luxury properties in South Africa and even the purchase of a Mozambican island named Inyathi.  Yan-Ping is the director of Shanghai Huangyan Economic and Trade Company and, from September to December 2007, supplied CAM, based in Gauteng, with spare parts and minibus taxis for nearly $22-million.

According to Yan-Ping's affidavit, the manufacturer only paid her $1,9-million. Prior to this, Yan-Ping supplied minibus taxis to CAM from May 2006 to August last year for $101-million, which it paid for.

These 14-seater taxis and spare parts are apparently cheaper than locally manufactured taxis.

At a meeting in December, the manufacturer's attorney, Michael Sun, said his client would pay Yan-Ping the outstanding amount if she signed an agreement he prepared. The alleged agreement was for the manufacturer to give Yan-Ping a 20 percent share of the profit from its South African business and for Yan-Ping to pay it 53,3 percent of the profit she generated in China by exporting vehicles to the manufacturer.

Yan-Ping refused and said Sun would be reported for his illegal conduct of wanting to "export monies without the permission of the Reserve Bank". This was also apparently against foreign exchange laws in China.

Through investigations, Yan-Ping said she learnt the directors and shareholders of CAM recently bought a house in Houghton Estates for R22 million, an island off Mozambique named Inyathi and properties in Midrand and Johannesburg Central for R20-million and R5-million respectively.

She said the two directors, Ismail Mia Asmal and Chi-Te Chung, and shareholders "acquired these properties, not in the company's name, to deplete the company's asset base and to not pay her".  Yan-Ping said CAM cannot pay its debts and should be liquidated so a liquidator can take charge of its affairs, investigate the company's assets and recover them to benefit creditors and in particular her company.  Letters of demand were sent to CAM for payment which were apparently denied.

Omar, Yan-Ping's attorney, has sent a copy of the court papers to Sars and CAM employees.

"I have come to South Africa especially for this (court) application. (CAM) has 200 vehicles which are not paid for which are at the storage depot in Klerksdorp with the intention of exporting these vehicles to Zimbabwe. In these circumstances it is just and equitable that (CAM) be placed under urgent provisional liquidation as it is a company that is unable to pay its debts," said Yan-Ping.  Sun, who is currently overseas, said he intended to file opposing papers and was confident of a "favourable outcome".

"This application comes at a time when my client isn't given much thought. We are of the view this application is weak and legally unsound and is filled with numerous contradictions. We are denying that CAM is in any financial situation and feel this is a bad legal tactic used by Shanghai Huangyan Economic and Trade Company. There was also a personal swipe at me, which I found untactful," said Sun.

The matter will be heard in the Johannesburg High Court on 4th March 2008.
 
Noelene Barbeau, www.iol.co.za