State-owned Broadband Infraco says it is in no way to blame for failing to table its annual report on time, following the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) informing Parliament in writing that three state-owned enterprises had failed to meet the deadline.
Public enterprises minister Lynne Brown's office said in a statement that South African Airways, South African Express Airways and Broadband Infraco failed to meet yesterday's deadline, as dictated by the Public Finance Management Act.
The department stated the reports would be tabled at a later stage, and explained that Broadband Infraco report's was late due to a "technical matter". In terms of the Companies Act, the state-owned enterprises had 15 calendar months after their previous annual general meeting (AGM) to hold the 2014 AGM.
The reports, according to the DPE, would be tabled at a later date, which would be published in Parliament's announcements, tabling and committees bulletin next Tuesday.
However, Sammy Mafu, Broadband Infraco GM of marketing, says the DPE's statement creates a negative impression, adding the company is in no way to blame for not handing in its annual report.
Mafu explains the holdup is due to the company currently being transferred from the DPE to the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services (DTPS), as per the Cabinet changes introduced by president Jacob Zuma.
Mafu says the company's report and financials have been finalised and are ready to submit to shareholders. However, it was forced to cancel its AGM, in August, when it transpired that the presidential proclamation - that would enable Broadband Infraco to move from the DPE to the DTPS - had not been finalised.
"Now that the proclamation has been finalised, we will hold our AGM in October," says Mafu.
Broadband Infraco is a licensed state-owned company that operates in the telecommunications sector, with the aim of improving market efficiency in the long-distance connectivity segment, by increasing the availability of long-distance network infrastructure.
The company says over the past two years it has seen significant growth in its customer numbers, and that its future expansion plans include growing its footprint in the South African Development Community region.
Earlier this year, Broadband Infraco stated it is also exploring funding options, as it needs additional capital to contribute to SA's goal of universal broadband access by 2020.
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