The Deputy Ranking Member on the Communications Committee of Parliament, Sam Nartey George, has discredited the Communications Minister, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful’s claim that the government is yet to seal the deal for the acquisition of telecommunication company, AirtelTigo.
He said the Minister’s claim is questionable, as the parent companies of AirtelTigo, Bharti Airtel Ghana Holdings B.V., and MIC Africa B.V, had already announced to its shareholders that it had transferred the shares of the company to the Ghana government.
Mr. George thus asked the government and Airtel Tigo to come clean on the deal.
“Bharti Airtel which owns AirtelTigo has announced on the Indian stock exchange that they have sold Airtel Tigo. The CEO of AirtelTigo that was appointed by Bharti Airtel has left the company. The new CEO is one appointed by the government. If anybody says the transaction has not been completed, then why appoint a new CEO?” he asked.
“It means one person is not telling the truth. Either the Ministry is not telling us the truth with regard to the full status of the transaction or Bharti Airtel has lied to its shareholders on the Indian Stock Exchange. One is not telling the truth, and I leave it to Ghanaians to decide who is being truthful and who is not being truthful.”
In August 2021, the government of Ghana, Bharti Airtel Ghana Holdings B.V., and MIC Africa B.V, concluded negotiations and signed an agreement to transfer the shares of the company to the Ghana government, following the announcement of the company’s departure from the Ghanaian market in 2020.
This agreement transfers all customers, assets, and agreed liabilities of AirtelTigo to the Government of Ghana.
However, the Minister of Communications while answering questions on the floor of parliament on Tuesday, February 15, 2022, said her outfit is collaborating with the Attorney General’s Department to seal essential aspects of the deal.
“We will improve the Telcom and ICT sector in full compliance with the laws of the country. So we will complete all constitutional and legal processes by the end of this meeting of parliament for the acquisition of AirtelTigo. The acquisition of Telecommunication companies follows a process, and those processes are ongoing. There are phases in these processes from contract signing, regulatory approvals, and closing obligations that parties have to undertake and the legal and regulatory processes that have to be gone through.”
