ELECAM boss linked in FCFA 20 billion scam

A recent report published by the Supreme State Audit of Cameroon has levelled charges of gross misappropriation against the General Manager of the Telecommunications Regulatory Agency, ART.

The report comes on the heels of an inspection carried out in the agency between August 2013 and April 2014.

According to the report, after several irregularities, a partial assessment of the loss of public funds estimated by the mission rose to the tune of FCFA 20.4 billion.

The report accused the GM of ART, Jean Louis Beh Mengue, 18 Directors and other executive officers of the company of financial malfeasance.

Some of those included in the report are; the Director General of Elections Cameroon, Mohaman Sani Tanimou, a Director at the Presidency of the Republic, Hessana Mahamat, Pierre Ananga Messina and Minister of Water and Energy Atangana Kouna.

They are also accused of illegally collecting a staggering sum of FCFA 1.02 billion in various bonuses. The same people received monthly telephone endowments, void of any legal backing, of circa FCFA 148.85 million or staffing liquors, wines and spirits to the tune of FCFA 213,4 million from Jean Louis Beh Mengue. Moreover, without legal basis, the 18 Directors and executive officials of ART received a special bonus of FCFA 1.17 billion.

The report further states that the ART GM is solely responsible for the establishment of a mobile phone monthly quota for his staff, alongside land lines and home telephones worth CFA 1.24 billion and remunerations to staff of the agency in violation of the salary schedule set by the Board of Directors (FCFA 2.31 billion).

It follows that he is equally responsible for the creation of committees and commissions recognised by the various departments of ART for consideration in the form of freebies and allowance tasks summing up to FCFA 770 million, overpriced real estate acquisitions worth FCFA 2.07 billion.

The Supreme State Audit also accuses Mengue of a decrease in the amount of penalties to some companies worth FCFA 3.74 billion or penalties granted to certain mobile operators at FCFA 3.4 billion.

Of the 69 irregularities that reportedly besmirched the management of ART since its commissioning in 2000, the Supreme State Audit deplores the "lack of control in the deployment of mobile telephone networks during the critical period from 2000 to 2005" or the lack of verification of annual sales reported by mobile operators.

In view of the money illegally spent, consumers may question the lack of money the telecom regulator has recently brandished to justify the lack of technical equipment to assess the poor quality of telecom services they endure for several years.