Zamtel operations grinding to a halt

Zamtel operations grinding to a halt
By Joan Chirwa-Ngoma, Ernest Chanda and Mwala Kalaluka
Sun 22 Jan. 2012, 14:00 CAT

OPERATIONS at Zamtel are almost grounded as several suppliers of goods and services have cut ties with the telecommunication company amidst uncertainty over its future. And justice minister Sebastian Zulu says the government will defend its decision to repossess Zamtel's 75 per cent shareholding from Lap Green Network of Libya. Meanwhile, the Drug Enforcement Commission says the frozen accounts would not affect salaries for Zamtel employees.

Sources told The Post that several suppliers of daily goods and services had withdrawn their businesses after reports of repossession of the company's 75 per cent shareholding sold to LAP GreenN of Libya.

"In short, what we can say is that there is no day-to-day decision making in Zamtel. The workers are currently headless, they don't know which route to take," said the sources.

"Senior management at Zamtel has not even been working. For example on Friday, they just pitched up in the morning and went away. Operations have almost ground to a halt."

And reacting to Lap GreenN's petitioning of the freezing of its bank accounts by DEC, Zulu said the government would not sit by and watch.

He said Cabinet decided to get back the country's only telecommunications Company based on recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry appointed by President Michael Sata to probe the sale.

"...We shall defend it. I mean if you are sued yourself, would you just sit by without defending yourself? So we shall defend ourselves. They're the plaintiffs; the government is the defendant, so that's all I can say," said Zulu yesterday.

"The government decided to reverse the deal and take back its shares. You see the freezing of the accounts is done through the security wings. So all I'm saying is that the government decided to rescind the agreement and take back its 75 per cent shares. That is the recommendation of the report; I'm sure you looked at the report. So the government agreed with that recommendation."

And the DEC yesterday indicated that it was considerate of the plight of workers.

"DEC has not frozen the salaries accounts," stated the Commission.

DEC's clarification follows concerns among workers that they risked not receiving their salaries owing to the Commission's decision to seize the company's accounts on suspicion of wrongdoing during the sale of Zamtel's 75 per cent shares to LAP GreenN.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Mumba Malila says he is unable to respond to Zamtel's court application for judicial review over the Drug Enforcement Commission's freezing of its bank accounts because he had not been served with the documents.

Malila said in an interview yesterday that it would be difficult for him to rebut Zamtel's decision to challenge the account seizure issue in the Lusaka High Court before he was served with the documents.

"I was not served with the documents. I have not seen the documents," said Malila who has been cited as the sole respondent in the matter.

"They should have served me with the documents by 5:00PM 17:00 hours yesterday Friday but I have not seen anything. I'm only hearing that there is something in the newspapers, but I have not even seen the papers yet."

When told that Zamtel's application for judicial review had already been filed in the Lusaka High Court and had even been allocated to judge Evans Hamaundu, Malila said he should have been served with the documents immediately they were filed in court.

"It's a predicament," he said.

Malila said by virtue of his position, he is the Zambian government's chief legal advisor.

Zamtel has sought an order from the High Court to quash the decision by DEC to unilaterally and unreasonably issue a notice of seizure in respect of its seized accounts.

The company went on to argue that that seizure of its accounts amounts to an indirect expropriation of property by the government through its department or institution, DEC. Zamtel claimed in its application that the decision by DEC was fraught with procedural impropriety.

Cabinet decided a few weeks ago to repossess 75 per cent shareholding in Zamtel sold to Libya's Lap GreenN for US $257 million during the former regime of Col Muammar Gaddafi.

But Lap GreenN has accused the local media of "misrepresenting" facts on the issue and maintained that the transaction for the sale of 75 per cent shares in Zamtel was done transparently and that the company followed laid down procedure.

Lap GreenN also threatened to take legal action, claiming that its name had been brought into disrepute following reports of irregularities cited in the report of a Commission of Inquiry instituted to investigate the sale of Zamtel.

And transport and communications minister Yamfwa Mukanga assured Zamtel employees that the situation was under control, urging them not to worry about their salaries.

Mukanga, who expressed ignorance about the freezing of Zamtel bank accounts by the DEC, said: "Firstly, I don't even know myself that these accounts have been frozen. And if they've been frozen I want to tell you that workers should not even worry. The workers will continue to receive their perks; they'll be taken care of. A decision will be passed by Cabinet which direction to take and it will work out. There should be no problem, no one should even worry."

When reminded further that the workers' salaries were due this Tuesday, Mukanga responded: "Okay, then issues will be dealt with quickly to enable our people get something."