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Actualités of Mardi, 30 Septembre 2014

Source: Ecofin Agency

Telecom regulator accused of causing $38.6m financial loss

Heavy mistakes of management have been attributed to Jean Louis Beh Mengue, Executive Director of the regulatory authority for telecommunications (ART).

According to the benchmark journal, these management errors were revealed by the report of the inspection mission of the greater State control (CONSUPE) which are filed between August 2013 and April 2014.

At the end of several deficiencies, the mission examined, partially, the financial injury suffered by public funds because of the mismanagement at 20 407 056 773 FCFA (close to $ 38.6 million).

According to the report from Consupe, Executive Director of ART and all 18 directors and executives of the national telecommunications regulatory body, which include Mohaman Sani Tanimou, Dg of Elections; Hessana Mahamat, DAG of the Presidency of the Republic, CAC ART and alternate Senator, Pierre Ananga Messina, politician and husband of the Minister-delegate of Minader; Basile Atangana Kouna, Minister of water and energy, unduly received 1,885 026 493 CFA FRANCS in respect to various benefits.

The same people received monthly telephone holdings valued at 148 850 000 FCFA legally unfounded or staffing liqueurs, wines and spirits for 462 213,479 CFA FRANCS on the part of Jean Louis Beh Mengue. For more, without legal basis, 18 directors and directing social art received a special bonus of 1 173 729 955 FCFA.

The report from CONSUPE considers the DG of the telecom regulator as solely responsible for the institution of 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 at 1 246 320 000 FCFA, the remuneration of the staff of the ART in violation of the salary set by the Board of Directors (2 313 943 950 FCFA), the institution of the committees and commissions responsible for carrying out the missions recognized the various services of the ART for a fee in the form of premiums and allowances (770 445 700 FCFA), overbilling of real estate acquisitions (2,349 070 433 FCFA).

Apart from discontinuation of royalties to some operators of telecommunications networks (Equatorial Communications Company: 276 086 400 FCFA and Africa Security Services: 93 960 000 FCFA), CONSUPE also accused Jean Louis Beh Mengue of reduction of the amount of certain penalties due (3 743 091 703 FCFA) 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).

Out of the 69 irregularities which marked the management of ART since its entry into service in 2000, the CONSUPE deplored a "lack of control deployment of the networks of GSM mobile telephone during the critical 2000-2005" or even the absence of verification of the annual turnover figures reported by the mobile operators.