So, who says it's impossible to put one over a big multinational company? A big round of applause must surely go to Benin's president, Thomas Boni Yayi, who successfully managed to shaft MTN, to the tune of $620 million (R4.34 billion).
See, in July, the West African country suspended MTN, as well as Atlantique Telecom's Moov, blocking the mobile operators under the pretence that both changed their names without permission. The condition to resume operations was that each had to pay "new" licence fees.
Boni Yayi is a dangerous man, after all. I can't think of anything more intimidating than an African dictator and banker, all rolled into one.
While MTN initially cried foul and lamented that Benin's government was denying services to thousands of citizens, the benevolent Boni Yayi stood his ground. How else was the man supposed to boost the country's gross domestic product?
Nonetheless, a few months down the line and MTN and Moov are back in business. The citizens of Benin can again reach out and touch someone, and all is good in the land of where voodoo has its roots.
Everybody wins, right? Well, kind of. Everybody except MTN and Moov, that is. While it's again business as usual for both, each is a couple of billion short. All together now, turn and wave at the new presidential yacht...
Crime is a problem; no really, it is
The citizens of Benin can again reach out and touch someone, and all is good in the land of where voodoo has its roots.
Martin Czernowalow, news editor, ITWeb
One has also got to feel sorry for the Department of Education, which has blamed SA's high crime rate for there being fewer computers in public schools today as compared to a decade ago.
In fact, Department of Education spokesman Lunga Ngqengelele says the department is "very worried" because "as soon as computers are placed in schools, within days they are wiped".
Supposedly, "wiped" refers to either vandalism or theft of computers (hey, the department even has its own ghetto-gangster lingo - that's kinda cool). Ngqengelele says "the problem of crime is a serious one". Full marks for being astute there, old chap! We need more men like this one, certainly leader material.
A departmental national infrastructure report shows connectivity in schools across the country only rose by 0.9% since 2000 and is down by 0.7% from 1996 levels.
So while the Department of Education had a little bitch about this situation, this week, it did not really say what it intends to do about it. Nonetheless, despite knowing PCs are getting "wiped", it seems like the department is adamant to continue supplying them.
"The computers are coming, both from the department and even the private sector; the serious problem is crime," says Ngqengelele.
Duh!
Sentech's wasting away
Sentech must be tired of standing with its hand stretched out. Yes, government's signal provider is going hungry, and no one seems to care.
This week, the state institution said it is still hobbled by funding constraints, which are keeping it from reaching its full potential. This despite a better financial performance in the 2006/7 financial year.
Now, when I say a better financial performance, I mean cutting its loss from R76.419 million in the 2005/6 financial year, to R21.53 million in the 2006/7 financial year. Scary stuff!
Sentech chairman Colin Hickling bitched about the fact that the Sentech board has continuously asked for more capital since the company was awarded the carrier of carrier and multimedia licences in 2002.
The challenge, he explained, is that government has either granted less than was requested, or has stalled in granting the money.
Not too sure why Sentech is being abused like this, but maybe Hickling and co are paying back some bad karma. Whatever it is, one has to feel sorry for them. The frustration is becoming tangible.
A word of warning to government: Sentech has a tower. All that's needed is a high-powered rifle. Maybe just give them the money, before someone goes postal...
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