The case - dating back to 2014 - relates to fake overseas bank statements procured by Kalawe last year, allegedly to dig up dirt on SAA board chairwoman Dudu Myeni. Kalawe sent the documents to O'Sullivan who later made them public.
In e-mails, O'Sullivan called on Myeni to resign and re-instate Kalawe as CEO of the airline. At the time Kalawe, who had been hired to implement the struggling airline's long-term turnaround strategy, had been suspended allegedly at the behest of Myeni, who is a close associate of President Jacob Zuma.
In a founding affidavit filed by Kalawe in the Labour Court to have a disciplinary inquiry against him stopped and his suspension lifted, he argued that SAA had charged him with sending the documents to O'Sullivan knowing he would make them public. However, Kalawe denied this and claimed to have made the disclosures in the interests of the national carrier. Kalawe later withdrew his application for an interdict against the disciplinary inquiry and the matter was heard before private arbitrator advocate Nazeer Cassim SC.
Kalawe received a R2.7m payout to resign from his position as CEO in April last year. SAA later lodged criminal charges against him and O'Sullivan.
Kalawe's legal representative Lee Binneman, of Schindlers Attorneys, said on Monday they were still awaiting proper confirmation of the charges. "We are still waiting to be provided with the contents of the police docket, and the case has been postponed to 7 June for that purpose," he said. Binneman said once they had been provided with the contents of the police docket, they would be able to respond to any charges.
National Prosecuting Authority of SA spokesman Luvuyo Mfaku said Kalawe, O'Sullivan and Abednigo Mbulawa have been charged with extortion, intimidation, fraud and forgery. He said they were released on a warning and the matter was postponed for disclosure of the police dockets.
Myeni's attorneys, ENS Africa would not comment on the matter, saying it was "sub judice".
Source: BDpro
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