One of the biggest business families in Nampula, also a major donor to Mozambique’s ruling Frelimo party, was behind an attempt to seize aircraft operated by South African airline Airlink, Zitamar News has learned.
Court documents show that Aquil and Arif Rajahussen, members of one of the most powerful business families based in Nampula province, said that they were involved in a dispute with Airlink staff on board a Nampula-bound airliner at Johannesburg airport last month. The argument led to them and several of their relatives being removed from the plane for what Airlink said was “unruly and threatening behavior”. The Rajahussen family then brought a claim against Airlink in the Nampula provincial court.
The attempted seizure led to Airlink cancelling flights to and from Nampula on Tuesday, citing the threat of having its aircraft appropriated. Flights resumed on Thursday following assurances from the Mozambican authorities.
The family controls the RGS Group, a conglomerate involved in agriculture, mining, logistics and other businesses in Mozambique.
Zitamar understands that the incident at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo airport was about luggage being taken into the cabin, while the cabin crew wanted it to be taken to the hold. Members of the Rajahussen family initially tried to persuade the management of Nampula airport to seize the aircraft in revenge for being removed from the flight, only to be told that a court order would be needed. The court order obtained last month was meant to be carried out on Tuesday, but Airlink avoided it by cancelling flights.
The order names ten people, including Aquil and Arif Rajahussen and several of their relatives, as claimants, and says that they are claiming a total of $40m in damages, as well as over $118,000 in alleged additional travel and other costs which the Rajahussein family says it incurred. The claimants said that they suffered damage to their reputation and that Rajahussein Gulamo, aged 75 and described in the court order as the father of the family, suffered health problems as a result of the incident. The judge who granted the order, Melú Inácio Malhaze, said it was appropriate to take possession of the aircraft as security for the damages.
Airlink complained to the aviation regulators in Mozambique and South Africa and took legal action. Zitamar understands that the South African diplomatic service was also involved and that an appeal was made to the office of President Filipe Nyusi. Another provincial court judge, Mohamed Khaled Varinda, then persuaded Malhaze to suspend the order.
Airlink insists that the court order was unlawful, since the Rajahusseins were removed from the flight in Johannesburg, its services are governed by South African law, the order was granted without Airlink being served with a claim, and Mozambique is, it says, signatory to legal conventions which prevent it from seizing foreign-register aircraft as security for legal claims.
A lawyer confirmed to Zitamar that the court in Nampula did not have the competence to hear a commercial claim over an incident that happened in South Africa.
The Rajahussen family are regular financial contributors to Frelimo. Rajahussen Gulamo is a well-known supporter of Frelimo, and members of his family have also been seen wearing Frelimo clothing.
Corrupt judiciary
Business sources in Nampula province have told Zitamar that they believe that the judiciary in Nampula is completely captured by corruption and court orders emerge from secret negotiations with businesses. Litigation is a strategy used by powerful businesses to extort money from their competitors or commercial banks, they say.
The same sources draw a parallel between the Airlink case and the incident that led to the seizure of agricultural goods traded by ETG Group at the request of Mozambican conglomerate Royal Group, also based in Nampula province. Even after the Attorney-General’s Office said that that seizure was unlawful, the court order was not cancelled. ETG is now seeking international arbitration to resolve the dispute. Judge Khaled also reversed an earlier attempt by Royal Group to seize the produce held by ETG.
RGS Group was once the owner of an airline named Air Corridor, which went bankrupt. More recently it has tried to buy the Mozambican sugar estates of South Africa’s Tongaat Hulett, but it was disqualified at the last stage of the tender process. It has bought another bankrupt sugar business in Marromeu, Sofala province.
Zitamar sought comment from Aquil Rajahussen, but he had not done so by the time of publication.
