Friday, October 26, 2012

Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra in Financial Distress

Last night, under the baton of maestro Robert Maxym, the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra (JPO) played like any other great orchestra in the world. It thus is a scandal today to learn that JPO is in financial distress and has started business rescue proceedings! Business rescue allows companies in financial distress to be rehabilitated under supervision and subject to a court order. The media ...
statement says, politely, that the Department of Arts and Culture is expected to provide funding, based on its undertakings, which, translated into straightforward non-PR non-bullshit English simply means that the department has not honoured its commitments to the orchestra - it is the same department that had not honoured its commitments to the aborted tour by the Cuban National Ballet this year! Then - now wait for this - the JPO statement goes on to say that it has applied to the National Lottery for a 2012 funding allocation. Am I missing something? If the JPO had applied for its 2012 funding and we are about to wave 2012 goodbye then surely that means the Lotto has not paid out - yet again! South Africans are being defrauded by the employees of the State and those given the task running the national Lotteries. If not the money itself then those employees at the very they are stealing the time they are being paid for to provide a service.

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