Mismanagement cost ART 20 billion CFA Francs

The Superior Control of the State (Consupe) has reported a mismanagement of resources amounting to 20 billion CFA francs by the Telecommunications Regulation Agency, Director General and members of the Board of Directors between August 2013 and April 2014.

Grave management errors occurred due to the negligence of the Director General of the Telecommunications Regulation Agency (ART), Jean Louis Beh Mengue and 18 Directors.

The mission found out that 20,407,056,773 CFA francs had been lost leading to several shortages including public funds.

He was also accused of misusing huge sum of money amounting to 1,026,493,885 CFA francs for certain benefits. The accused persons received monthly telephone holdings totaling 148,850,000 CFA francs and staffing liqueurs, wines and spirits for 462,213,479 CFA francs to Jean Louis Beh Mengue.

The 18 directors also received without legal basis a special bonus of 1,173, 729,955 CFA francs.

According to the report, the 18 Directors and Executives of the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, include: Mohaman Sani Tanimo, DG of the Elections; Mohaman Sani Tanimo, DG of the Presidency of the Republic, CAC ART and alternate Senator; Pierre Ananga Messina, politician and husband of the Minister the Minader; Basile Atangana Kouna, Minister of water and energy.

The report judge, the DG of the Telecom Regulator as solely responsible for the institution for a monthly quota of mobile phone to the staff of the Art on the margins of the allowance of telephony included in Member pay and fixed telephone and home to the tune of 1,246,320,000 CFA francs, the remuneration of the staff of Art in violation of the salary set by the Board of Directors (2,313,943,950 CFA francs), the institution of the committees and commissions responsible for carrying out the missions recognized the various services of Art for a fee in the form of perdiems and allowances (770,445,700 CFA francs), overbilling of real estate acquisitions (2,349,070,433 CFA francs).

Apart from discontinuation of royalties to some operators of telecommunications networks (Equatorial Communications Company: 276,086,400 CFA francs and Africa Security Services: 93,960,000 CFA francs).

Consupe also accused Jean Louis Beh Mengue of reduction of the amount of certain penalties due (3,743,091,703 CFA francs) or penalties granted to operators of mobile telephony Gsm (3,413,660,000 FCFA, including 2,890,440, 000 Fcfa for the sole company Orange-Cameroon).

On 69 irregularities which marked the management of Art since its entry into service in 2000, Consupe deplored a "lack of control deployment of the Gsm mobile telephony networks during the critical 2000-2005 period " or even the absence of verification of the annual turnover figures reported by the mobile operators.

With regard to illegally spent, consumers might wonder about the lack of money that the telecom regulator has recently brandished to justify the absence of technical equipment to assess the poor quality of telecom services they endured for several years.