Telkom and Iscor bosses are driven by pure greed

http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=553&fArticleId=2208031

OPINION & ANALYSIS

Telkom and Iscor bosses are driven by pure greed

The oft-repeated mantra that it is shareholder fundamentalism that drives the greed, lay-offs and price gouging, as evidenced by the monopolistic, privatised parastatals Telkom and Iscor, does not make it true.

What is happening is not shareholder fundamentalism but greed, pure and simple; most shareholders have a conscience.

These two companies were built by our sweat and taxes, and were supported by this nation to become the entities they are.

That the state has failed to put proper protections in place for workers and for the downstream economy that depends heavily on these two parasitic succubi is a poor reflection on the liberation movement and its interpretation of the Freedom Charter
.

Instead of the people benefiting, as claimed during the Telkom listing, a few well-connected fat cats rake in most of the profit as the rest of us struggle to keep up with inflationary price hikes. Same, but worse with Iscor.

This is not the free market; it's a free lunch for the rich. Trickle-down does not happen; it is voodoo economics of the most abusive sort.

If we want to level the playing fields, we've gone about it in the most perverse way. We, the people, are singularly unimpressed.


Glenn Ashton
Noordhoek

<b><blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">These two companies were built by our sweat and taxes, and were supported by this nation to become the entities they are.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

My thoughts:

This has been my stance from the beginning. Telkom for one was built out the sweat and taxes of the SA Public. And I'm really sorry, but the Government fscked up big time. And now we all are paying dearly for it. Thank you(sarcasm). Makes you wonder what you are paying taxes for? So that the CEO of the now Listed Telkom can go on a luxury yacht to Athens and the bloody rest, while Joe Public are been ripped off wholesale at home and thousands face retrenchment within Telkom.</b>

<b>Gregg Stirton of Hellkom's opinion: http://www.hellkom.co.za

"These two companies were built by our sweat and taxes" - and now Telkom bigwigs prance about with huge profits and call it 'their' network when it's actually ours - they 'inherited' it from the taxpayers in some or other way, how I'm not entirely sure of.</b>

<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">

Another Opinion off the Hellkom Vent Page: http://www.hellkom.co.za

Lu

Crime Central

I have had ADSL in the office for 2 years now (would have been 2 and a half years but they lost my request for ADSL 4 times) and have never been happier.

That's not saying much, I'm pretty much used to bad service, 3rd rate goods and terrible excuses (I've been dealing with Hellkom for years now).

The only thing we can hope for is a 2nd service provider here, competition does wonders in a monopolised market.

I was in the UK during the start of their 2nd and then 3rd service providers and saw prices drop through the floor and quality of service climb through the roof.

Most of BT's senior management was "removed" from their positions of power and put on the breadline with all of the employees they had retrenched over the years because they couldn't make money in an environment where they weren't the monopoly.

The difference between the workers and the directors however was that the workers had skills which they could take into the marketplace, the directors and senior managers could only count the 0s on their bonus cheques (not much market for that unless you move to the government).

Long live free enterprise.

Thought for the day: If only we could figure out a way to get an alternate supplier for government services, we could put the politicians out of business as well.

<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">

bad idea just imagine outsourcing the gov's management like teklom did with SBC
Before we get out of the bed in the morning we would have to play royalties on the air we breathe

Proud South african rip offs.