SAN FRANCISCO, October 03, (THEWILL) – The House of Representatives Thursday advised the executive to suspend forthwith the on-going liquidation of the Nigerian Telecommunications Ltd (NITEL) and its Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) subsidiary, Mobile Telecommunications Ltd (MTel).
It also requested the immediate technical and financial audit of the national carrier and its mobile arm in addition to canvassing for a Public Private Partnership (PPP) alternative to outright sale of the two telecommunication companies.
The advice of the House was given following the endorsement of the recommendations of the report of its committees on privatisation and commercialisation, finance, communications, public procurement and information technology on the need to stop the liquidation process
In the recommendations, the Federal Government was urged to direct the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) to direct its records office to eliminate the existing over N170 billion variance under the supervision of the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation.
Also approved by the House was that the NCP should direct the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) to comply with the Federal High Court judgement in favour of former 300 staff of the two organisations treated as casuals and the other one in favour of pensioners of the two organizations.
Similarly, it advised that the NCP should consider the proposal for revamping the companies as against the privatisation process as submitted by the ex-staff, consultants and others as an alternative to outright liquidation the two telecommunication companies.
The recommendations further states: “That NCP should recommend to the Federal government to include NITEL and MTEL in the Central Bank of Nigeria bailout intervention fund with a total sum equivalent of $1billion to be refunded with interest over a period of five years.
“That the Federal government should direct the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and NITEL management to determine the fees due to the new regime from single double tandem that was unfair to NITEL.
“That the Federal Government should direct NCC to include the present management of NITEL and MTEL in the National Broadband Implementation Roadmap.
“NCP should direct BPE and present management of NITEL/MTEL Creditors Forum among those to be paid. ”
By Saint Mugaga, Abuja
