MPs Select Committee meets UTL board in Dubai

UTL still has potential to thrive again – Dr. Faisel Gergab

The Chairman of Libyan Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Holding Company (LPTIC) Dr. Faisel Gergab has reassured parliament that Uganda Telecom Limited (UTL) still has a future. He promised that the company will come up with a transformation plan to boost the company’s existing services.

“I am confident that UTL still has significant potential and a great opportunity within the world to provide high quality services,” Dr. Gergab told the Select Committee on UTL at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) on Sunday.

At the meeting, Steven Kaboyo, the chairperson of UTL Board, blamed many of the problems the company is facing on the minority shareholder (Uganda government). He blamed government for the bureaucracy in decision making, and also the failure to pay over sh16 billion owed by government entities.

“UTL demands lot of money in terms of services offered to government entities. We are now working with the Secretary to Treasury to start deducting this money at source and we shall also disconnect those who haven’t paid just like we have done to Uganda Police,” Kaboyo said.

At the meeting, the UTL committee chairperson Okin Ojara (Independent MP Chua West) explained why the Parliament Select Committee moved to Dubai to meet with the UTL board and majority shareholders LPTIC via its subsidiary LAP-Green whose offices are currently located in UAE.

The committee concluded their tour by checking on the offices of Lap Green since one of the allegations about this company is that they didn’t have offices in Dubai, as they claimed.

He said it is the final part of the committee’s investigation and a vital fact finding mission, which started after  Nandala Mafabi (MP Budadiri West) reported to Parliament ‘gross mismanagement’ of  UTL.

Libyans willing to work with Uganda to save UTL

Dr. Gergab informed members that LPTIC and the Libyan Government were still willing to work with the Ugandan Government to transform UTL into a leading universal telecoms service provider. He promised that by the end of 2017, UTL will be a transformed company, if issues of lack of clear strategy, over staffing and under funding among others are solved.

“This meeting has been quite insightful on both sides. We have agreed to work together to solve the problems of UTL and to improve it for the good of Ugandan consumers,” Dr. Gergab said.

Others on the Select Committee are Michael Tusiime (NRM, Mbarara Munic.), William Nzoghu (FDC, Busongora North),  Thomas Tayebwa (NRM, Ruhinda North),  Paul Akamba (Ind., Busiki),  Lillian Nakate (NRM, Luwero district) and  Paula Turyahikayo (NRM, Rubabo).

Land titles

MP Nzoghu put it to the majority shareholders to explain why their managers were using supersonic speed to acquire new land titles, and to cancel the old ones.

Steven Kaboyo, the Chairperson of UTL Board informed the Committee that they were looking for land tittles as a common business strategy to have a proper value in the market for all their assets.

MP Tayebwa  on his part however, informed the management of Lap Green that the committee was not taking any allegations as true, and said that information collected in the meeting was to be investigated so as to make a well balanced report, and have the recommendations reported back to Parliament.

“After meeting all parties, we shall be in a better position to write a well-balanced report. We promise you that we are taking nothing for gospel truth until the investigations are complete,” he said.

MP Turyahikayo  informed the meeting that the committee was left to meet a few more people as wound up the investigation.

“Our visit to Dubai has been informative, and will add a lot of value to the investigation,” she said.

Who owns UTL?

Despite recent challenges, UTL continues to provide vital services across the spectrum for consumers, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and large corporate enterprises.

Established in 1988, UTL is one of the longest-running telecom operators in Uganda. LPTIC via its subsidiary LAP-Green holds 69% majority shareholding in UTL whilst the Ugandan Government holds a minority 31% shareholding in the company.

Uganda Telecom Limited’s financial troubles came to the limelight when  Nandala Mafabi, (FDC, Budadiri West) tabled a petition in Parliament in November 2016.

In the petition, Mafabi accused management at UTL of asset stripping, insider trading and failure to manage a skyrocketing debt eating into the company’s coffers. He queried why UTL did not heed advice to carry out a forensic audit by the Auditor General’s Office, since any company in which government has an interest in terms of shares  must be subjected to the audits.

The petition prompted the Speaker of Parliament  Rebecca Kadaga, to constitute a seven-member Select Committee to probe the management and operations of UTL and to also investigate the state of health of UTL; to determine its economic value and also advise on whether government should continue holding shares in the company. The Select Committee will also inquire into whether UTL is complying with both national and international laws and requirements for communication, and whether the company is complying with NSSF requirements.

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editor@independent.co.ug