Vodafone Ghana |
Following the Group's decision to sell its 70%
interest to Telecel Group, there is an unsettling stillness at Vodafone Ghana.
A number of corporate employees are worried about
possible job losses if the purchase is ultimately completed and a new
shareholder takes over the operation.
The government promised to
safeguard employees of Ghana Telecom when Vodafone
Group originally took over, but that was not to be as hundreds of
employees were thrown off, although with generous severance compensation.
Graphic Business has learned that while it is
still early, the concerns of the employees who talked with the newspaper under
the condition of anonymity continue, as they wait for a formal
notification from the government or their company about the next steps.
The business has declined to respond since the
news first leaked last Friday.
The SIM re-registration drama, which took centre
stage over the weekend amid worries that the deadline would be respected and
those who had not registered would lose their numbers, has also overshadowed
the progress.
Attempts to get in touch with government sources
for comment have also been unsuccessful since they keep a tight lid on the
situation.
Under normal circumstances, the Vodafone Group is
required to provide the government the first right of refusal prior to going
public under the terms of the transaction that offloaded the largest stake of
the firm.
According to information obtained by Graphic
Business monitored by GHANA News ONLINE, the government was aware of the
decision but has not formally informed Vodafone Group of its stance about the
company's future course of action.
Vodafone losing subscribers
Since the beginning of the year, the company's subscriber base has been
slipping behind that of its rivals.
For instance, the number of the company's mobile voice users fell from
7.7 million at the end of March to 7.5 million in April, a 2.44 percent
reduction.
Despite maintaining its ranking as the second-largest telecom in the
nation with 18.26% of the market as of the end of April, there are indications
that the firm is experiencing significant financial difficulties.
For instance, there are rumours that the company's CSR arm, the Vodafone
Foundation, has dramatically reduced its funding.
No investment
Graphic Business has also learned that the Group
has declined to contribute financially to the firm's operations since the
company's minority stakeholder, the Ghanaian government, which owns 30% of the
company, has done the same since the acquisition.
Source: ghananews.hrforum.uk
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