LAP Green Networks, the 75 per cent owners of Zamtel, have resolved to resort to legal options to protect their reputation following what they term as “concerted campaign of misinformation via the Zambian media.”
LAP Green Chairperson Wafik Alshater, who was scheduled to come to Zambia but has since cancelled his trip, said in a statement released in Lusaka from London yesterday that: “LAP Green categorically rejects any allegations of wrong-doing during the acquisition of its 75 per cent stake in Zamtel.
At all times LAP Green followed the due process, facilitated by a consortium of internationally renowned professional service companies, including Standard Bank, Denton Wilde Sapte and KPMG South Africa.
The open and competitive bid process was overseen by the Zambian Development Agency and included the direct involvement of the Attorney General and international legal advisers, Simmons and Simmons.”
Mr Alshater said LAP Green was being subjected to a concerted campaign of misinformation through the Zambian media.
But chief Government spokesperson Fackson Shamenda said Government did not want to enter into an argument with LAP Green because it was working to promote transparency and accountability in all transactions.
Mr Shamenda said the Government followed all legal channels and advised that Mr Alshater should in fact feel remorseful for accusing the local media of being involved in a campaign to discredit his organisation.
The minister said there was nothing sinister about reports by the Zambian media on Zamtel as it presented factual information as contained in the inquiry findings.
Mr Shamenda who is Information, Broadcasting and Tourism Minister said the Government could not influence the media to report negatively about LAP Green because the Zamtel report was accurate.
Mr Shamenda said it was regrettable that Mr Alshater could attack the Zambian media which was merely working to rightfully inform the public on the findings of the report.
He said it was unfortunate that Mr Alshater could try to fight the media when it was President Michael Sata who directed that the Zamtel findings be made public.
In the statement, Mr ?Alshater said the 75 per cent stake sold to LAP Green in June 2010 for US$257 million (K1.37 trillion) constituted the highest amount ever paid for a privatisation in Zambia and was at the time one of the higher valuations for a telecoms asset in Africa.
He charged that accusations that Zamtel was undervalued at the point of sale were baseless.
Mr Alshater pointed out that Zamtel was a successful turn-around story and that LapGreen remained keen to cooperate with their partners in Zambia to ensure the continued growth and success of the company.
[Times of Zambia]
Why werent all these consultants interviewed during the inquiry? It was hurried, ill considered and will embarrass all of us. Any credible inquiry should have involved the reporting accountants, merchant banks, legal advisors and the people who performed the valuation, among others. Did they even go through the due dilligence reports? Corporate valuation is complex and I dont think Sebastien Zulu knows anything about it. To jsu tell people Zamtel was undervaluaed is just silly. Besides, no two people will value a business exactly the same. Thats why you need the valuer to explain their assumptions. What a circus, the only thing missing are the monkeys on high wires!!
The monkeys are there, actually! They are the circus masters this time around. LOL!!
Didnt expect LAP Green to go down without a fight. This is just the begining.waching this space :-w
When are ever going to have intelligent leaders in Zambia? The kind we have now is running the country like its a village.
When are we ever going to have intelligent leaders in Zambia? The kind we have now is running the country like its a village.
@ Independent, have you taken time to read and understand the finding of the inquiry? am sure every other person is still looking at it, do not jump into speech before you seek the truth. you should be ready to dig out the roots of the truth that you speak of. Happy mouth.
@ 1 Independent, Read the report please. No due delligence was conducted on any of the consultants. The corporate Valuation you are talking about was not there, everything was done in a hurry. That is why people are complaining. There are many qualified Zambians who understand corporate valuation procedures and they know it was not done properly as reflected in the report. Dont blame Zulu, he worked with qualified lawyers and Accountants. See the report please
@1 independent, hope that monkey phrase you have used is not based on tribal lines otherwise, I can sure you the monkeys are doing very fine. One of these days someone will be found with paints down beacuase PF is going to perform
@ Independent, take your time to read and understand the document before making such comments. The gvt has not taken LAP Green to court though they are threatening to take legal action. Zambia is not for sale!
you people are nuts.. period , i bet you none you have a cellz sim card later on landline..Patriotism? at what price?
i agree with independent 100% we wil just embarance ourselves as a nation at the end of the day, MMD privatised ZAMTEL in a wrong way yes but not as it is being projected by misinformed citizens, have a look at the report on the enquiry u will notice that very important stakeholders have no word in it eg the valuaters, auditors and legal institutions involved in the privatisation. by the way those who don’t have the report post your email i forward it to u now. i wish our govt gets into negotiations instead of straight thinking of repossession. that’s what i think. we will not correct a wrong with a wrong no!
Bloggers like @1 Independent ned to go back to chool.. seriously.. Dont you know that a country is Sovereign and law to itself and cannot be sued in Zambian courts for expropriation,if thats the case, as Venezuela did to Exxon? The transaction was done under Zmabia law, and jurisdiction was Zambia, unless Kunda and RB did the unthinkable by giving Libyans further protection and registering the the deal under UK law and UK courts being the court of arbitrage and dispute resolution.. Then there’s a slight.. Again.. UK law has no jurisdiction over Zambian assts in Zambia and would be thrown out..Thats why in international investment the main risk type is sovereign risk.. you invest in a country at your own peril.
Let the GOVT release to the public a schedule of how they will audit all foreign missions since they are through with canada .
I see alot of Senior Managers and Directors at Zamtel commenting in this string… and we know why. Whats so difficult about understanding pre-qualification requirements even dumb wits can do that. e.g how long the company has been in the industry…surely should you make such unintelligible comments please read the full report
Shamenda should learn to read. Alshater was not complaining about the media in Zambia. He was complaining about “the concerted campaign of misinformation via the Zambian media.” The media merely transmits information emanating from sources, in this case the PF govt. That is the problem of low level education – did Shamenda fail his English comprehension tests in Std 6?
#6 and #7, I have read the report. Corporate valuation has nothing to do with accountants. To say a due dilligence was not done is ridulous because I was involved in the Zamtel DD for an international telecoms firm. They walked away because it wasnt a good asset by international stadards. I am not that ignorant.
#10, If you had any clue about what you are saying, you would know that an arbitrator just ruled that Venezuela should pay almost US$900m to Exxon. Every transaction has an arbitration clause and in most cases (likely with Zamtel), the arbitration is outside the country. That arbitration is binding and Zambian assets and reserves can be attached. Sovereignity doesnt apply in business. People are not stupid. We are in a global village now and you cant expropriate assets without any compensation. PF’s populist rhetoric will cost Zambian taxpayers a lot of money. 90days later, nothing has been done. Just noise and more noise.
cry my beloved country :(( hw many people had cellz simcards then as compared to now????surely even if u took it back it wouldnt perform any better than its doing now.better we just renogiate on the shares held than totally repossessing it.this report stinks of state house amd is one sided
#13 Chikola, spot on. Shamenda is misdirected. Lap did not attack the Zambian media. At his rate of understanding issues, Shamenda may not last long in that office. He will be creating problems from thin air.
In support of Independent @ 15. An international arbitration panel has decided to award the world’s largest publicly owned oil company just under $908m for the Cerro Negro project, located in the Orinoco heavy oil belt, which Chávez nationalised along with three other projects in the same area.
The socialist leader upset a number of multinationals by nationalising assets in order to increase state spending on anti-poverty initiatives. He still faces more than a dozen other claims from groups including the US oil producer ConocoPhillips and Swiss cement maker Holcim
Whether the valuation for the assets was done or not that award to lap greenN was Illegal based on th orequalification requirements.
That being said I suggest that rupiah’s immunity be lifted and he be put to his defence with Dora
“The minister said there was nothing sinister about reports by the Zambian media on Zamtel as it presented factual information as contained in the inquiry findings.” Mr Shamenda, may I suggest that you teach the media to use terms like “….the inquiry report alleges that……” rather than reporting the inquiry report as factual, which may not be the case given the political cloud surrounding that commission of inquiry. You could save your media and the nation a lot of legal and financial anguish.
INDEPENDENT. Its agony to convince the lot with emaciated intelligence on global commercial transactions. Its complexity triggers hysteria feelings without cure. Try hard mate I appreciate, but we ‘ve a long way to go and this will be a litmus test case.