Post liquidated

Wed, 02 Nov 2016 09:10:48 +0000

The Post Newspaper which was closed by the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) for failing to honour its tax obligations amounting to about K53 million was yesterday placed under compulsory liquidation by the High Court for Zambia.

The High Court has since appointed Lewis Chisanga Mosho of Lewis Nathan Advocates of Lusaka as the provisional liquidator in respect of all assets of the newspaper company.

The High Court has notified all creditors and other interested parties for purposes, inter alia, of submitting claims with the provisional liquidator.

The Post Newspaper owes its former employees a hooping sum of K785, 000 in unpaid salaries and benefits apart from the K53 million owed to ZRA which closed the newspaper sometime in June this year.

According to court documents obtained by the Daily Nation, five former employees of the Post Newspaper have petitioned the High Court to have the newspaper liquidated.

Those who have petitioned the High Court include Andrew Hebert Chiwenda, Roy Habalu, Bonaventure Bwalya Mwendalubi Mwene and Abel Mbozi all of whom are former employees of the newspaper.

The petitioners aver that the Post Newspaper has failed to pay all amounts due to them.

The five petitioners in their winding up petition to the High Court stated that all the income generating assets of the Post Newspaper had been seized by other creditors of the newspaper company and that the newspaper was no longer in operation or going concern.

They said there was no likelihood that the Post Newspaper was going to resume business once the seized assets were sold off to satisfy other creditors.

They said it was, therefore, just and equitable to wind up the company so as to enable all the creditors of the newspaper company to share into and participate in the distribution of the assets of the company in accordance with the priority of payments prescribed under the Companies Act once the assets were sold off.

 “It is hereby ordered that Lewis Mosho of Messrs Lewis Nathan Advocates be and is hereby appointed to act as Provisional Liquidator in respect of all assets and properties of the Respondent (Post Newspaper) in the Winding up of proceedings,” the ex-parte order read in part.

According to the ex-parte order appointing the provisional liquidator, the provisional liquidator will have powers to carry on the business of the Post Newspaper so far as was necessary for the beneficial winding up.

Mr Mosho, the Provisional Liquidator will have powers to make any compromise or arrangement with creditors, make agreements on all questions in any way relating to or affecting the assets or winding up of the Post Newspaper.

The Provisional Liquidator will have powers to take into custody and control all the assets of the Post Newspaper and bring or defend any action or other legal proceedings in the name and/or on behalf of the Post Newspaper.