Court temporarily liquidates real estate company

The real estate company owned by Mpumalanga businessperson and conservationist Fred Daniel was yesterday provisionally liquidated, despite his claims that the business could still be rescued.

Acting Judge Nante Diedericks granted an order in the High Court in Pretoria, placing Mountain View Investments (Pty) Limited under provisional liquidation. He gave interested parties until July 11 to provide reasons why the company should not be finally wound up.

Daniel, who also owns Cradle of Life eco-tourism game reserve in Badplaas, Mpumalanga, earlier his month applied to have his company placed under business rescue, but the judge refused to suspend the liquidation proceedings as the papers hadn’t been properly served by the sheriff.

Counsel for Pretoria company Altfund, which applied for Mountain View’s liquidation, argued that the business rescue application was just another attempt to frustrate them as they have been trying since 2014 to get more than R3.2 million out of Mountain View and Daniel, but have not received a cent of the original amount or the series of costs orders against them.

Daniel was in the news last year when he obtained interim protection orders against Deputy President David Mabuza (then Mpumalanga premier) and Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency officials.

He accused Mabuza and the agency of harassing him and sabotaging his tourism business by withholding permits and licences after he blew the whistle exposing alleged fraud and corruption.

Altfund’s managing director Bernard Barnard said in court papers they had obtained judgment against Mountain View in 2016 for the payment of R807 000 plus interest dating back to 2014 in respect of a loan to Mountain View, but instead of paying, Daniel and his company launched one application after another in an attempt to delay the execution of the judgment.

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