The SPTC/MTN saga an embarassment to govt

As I continue following the MTN/SPTC saga play out in the media, I ask myself how long citizens of this country would continue to be fooled by these telecommunications giants? I mean really, why should the games they continue playing cost us this much? This is so unfair to us customers.

When SPTC launched the new generation products that we were told were now compliant with the ICA rulings we were assured that we were not going to suffer the same fate we suffered with the initial ONE product that ended up being trashed.
MTN did not waste time telling us they would be going to court should the launch proceed, and true to their word they have. SPTC then continued to assure the nation and the line ministry added its voice only to deny it later. Even if the ministry said nothing I suppose we would still hold it against the ministry today because SPTC reports to this ministry and the ministry cannot justifiably dissociate itself from the actions of this wholly owned entity.

When MTN made it clear it would be going to court, we read one of the most unbelievable statements; which although it gave comfort to us consumers, looked inopportune and inappropriate – that MTN was instructed not to go to court on this matter. And that some of us thought this was an infringement to the rights of this corporate citizen.

That today MTN has made an application in court to have the sheriffs and police go over to SPTC and ‘pull the plug’ as they put it, just shows that MTN has not heeded the advice of authorities. In our culture, when Their Majesties or people acting on their instruction have made a pronouncement such as this, no one has the right to go against that instruction; not even the courts, might I add. I know things may be different in the corporate world as different principles appy there. I think we are in for a very interesting time in this country, where authorities say this and people do something different.

Government has on many occasions said things and ended up succumbing to the will of the people and doing the opposite. Consider the situation with parastatals and civil servants’ freeze on, increments that finally got approved later on hopefully because politicians stood to benefit as well.
Reflecting on this I ask myself if government’s word counts for anything anymore. I mean some of us rushed to buy the gadgets and devices now being offered by SPTC with the hope these would work this time; and now we are not sure what to think. And again, government is silent once again; at a time when we would like it to shed light on what is to become of this fiasco in the making?

Government has to say something here as it cannot turn a blind eye to its entity going around marauding and plundering the citizens of this country by selling them products that never work in the longer term. As shareholder, government has to take responsibility and rein SPTC in given the number of blunders created around its business line.

Interestingly, SPTC doesn’t seem to be the only errant and aberrant institution in matters of breaching the law; as we now learn that MTN may as well be flouting the law as regard self-provisioning in its implementation of the 3G network. It was interesting to note that MTN was also cited as going against the same JVA that it passionately compels SPTC to respect - talking of approaching matters with unclean hands here.

One of the famous singers of reggae music from Jamaica had this song saying that if you live in a glass house don’t throw stones, and looking at the way MTN has been crying wolf, wolf everywhere you would think they are not capable of doing anything wrong; I hope that is the case though.
My point here is that government is embarrassing itself to its citizens by failing to control and regulate the activities of MTN/SPTC that end up costing the citizens of this country as nobody bothers to compensate the latter when the products are finally put on hold; which they will once again.

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