Telkom buyback shares. ICASA "in the dark"

[BTTB]

Cape Times Business Times, Wednesday, June 9 2004, Page 3. Telkom gets go ahead to buy back shares. The board has given Telkom permission to buy back its shares if either the state or the foreign owned Thintana Consortium, started selling shares on the open market.

Cape Times, Wednesday, June 9 2004, Page 4. <b> ICASA "in the dark" about Telkom agreement.</b>
IFP MP Suzanne Vos wanted to know if there was anything in a "secret share-holding" agreement between Telkom and the government that would militate against a reduction in telephone costs.
Langa from ICASA replied, “We are as much in the dark as you are”.


<b><hr noshade size="1"></b><font size="2"><font color="red"><b>You can take Telkom out of the Post Office but you can't take the Post Office out of Telkom.</b></font id="red"></font id="size2">

[Tharaxis]

Aw, isn't that cute.

In fact, it's sickening.

If ICASA was a private body and listed I would expect to see its share price fall down to a few cents a share. This is absolutely ridiculous, what kind of regulator is this that has absolutely ZERO knowledge about the entity it's supposed to be regulating?

Doesn't this throw up some warning lights at ICASA?! I mean come ON, they should KNOW this stuff.

[mbs]

THARAXIS: Whoa - ICASA don't have insight into the machinations and other goings-on at Telkrap: they're merely the regulatory body that must ensure compliance with the law. If evidence of breach comes to light, they must then take steps to get it fixed. I'm not so sure if equity sales falls under this heading, unless it contravenes sections of the Companies Act - even in this case, they are not necessarily empowered to act, as their mandate directly concerns telecommunications issues. I think breach of the Companies Act would fall under the NPA to prosecute, with investigation conducted by the Scorpions, seeing that they're a state-owned organisation...