The Zambian government has, with immediate effect, reversed the sale of Zesco's optic fibre network to the Zambia Telecommunication Company (Zamtel) owned by Lap Green Networks of Libya.
The nation-wide optic fibre was owned by the power utility company but was sold together with Zamtel to Lap Green Networks last year in a transaction the previous Zambian government claimed was aimed at saving the company from collapsing because it was not making profit.
But Christopher Yaluma, the new minister of Land, Energy and Water Development, has reversed the sale of the optic fibre network after Zesco complained that it was politically pressured to sell the optic fibre to Lap Green Network.
“The optic fibre network is the country's communication backbone and, therefore, it cannot be sold. I direct that the fibre network be given back to Zesco,” said Yaluma, as he toured Zesco.
Yaluma said the optic fibre network should be used to develop the country's communication needs and wondered why the previous administration decided to sale the fibre network.
Zambia's new president Michael Sata has constituted a Commission of Inquiry to look into how Zamtel, a former state-owned telecommunication company, was sold at $257 million by the previous government.
However, Zesco director for Kafue Gorge Lower hydro-electric project, Christopher Mubemba, told the Commission of Inquiry last week that Zesco was pressured by the previous government to sell 80% of the optic fibre network to Zamtel in order to make the telecommunication company attractive for sale to the Libyans.
“Zamtel has actually not paid anything for the optic fibre network, meaning that Zesco has not benefited anything from the fibre network,” said Mubemba.
In addition, Mubemba said Zesco was also compelled to handover all its 20 commercial customers including MTN and Airtel and was not permitted to carry out any optic fibre business in the country.
The reversing of the sale of the company by Yaluma means that Lap Green Network will have to sign a commercial contract with Zesco for the use of the fibre cables.
Unlike MTN and Airtel that have invested heavily in the laying of their own optic fibre networks for 3G networks among others, Zamtel has only been expanding its New Generation Network using the Zesco fibre network from the time the company was sold.
Zesco's cable, designed to offer reliable telecommunications system for mobile, fixed and Internet technology covers 4 000 kilometres across the country.
President Sata claims Zamtel was dubiously sold to Lap Green Network and, therefore, the sale should be reversed. Sata said the 70% controlling shares sold to Lap Green Network should have been sold to Zambians in order to empower them.
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