AFP, Pretoria | Wednesday
COMMUNICATIONS Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri has applied for the right to appeal a high court order preventing her from awarding the country’s third cellular phone licence.
The minister wanted the Constitutional Court, the highest court in the country, to set aside an interim order blocking her from naming the third licence holder, according to her spokesperson Brian Sokutu.
The interim order was obtained in July by Nextcom, a consortium backed by interests in Hong Kong and suspended a recommendation by the independent South African Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (SATRA) that the minister award the licence to the group Cell C which is backed by interests in Saudi Arabia.
The tender process for the third licence has been dogged by controversy and claims of corruption.
Nextcom has alleged that Matsepe-Casaburri interfered with the independent body’s decision-making process.
The consortium obtained the interim order preventing her from awarding the licence pending an application by the group for a review, due in September, of the whole bidding process.
Granting the order, Pretoria High Court acting Judge Nico Coetzee said he was satisfied that Nextcom’s application would be successful.
However Sokutu’s statement said the judgement raised several constitutional issues regarding the minister’s powers and Matsepe-Casaburri would argue that it contravened the provisions of the country’s telecommunications act.
Cell-C’s Saudi Arabian backer, Saudi Oger, has promised massive investment in South Africa if it wins the tender. The government has been anxious to press ahead with awarding the licence.
SATRA has twice recommended the licence be awarded to Cell C which is 60% owned by Saudi Oger, while NextCom is 40% owned by Hong Kong-based Distacom Group.
South Africa’s cellular telephone market is expected to be worth R15bn by 2003, according to media reports.
Nine groups initially submitted tenders: two withdrew and one was disqualified.