ZAMTEL Acting Chief Executive Officer Sydney Mupeta has assured that the state owned telecoms operator is not on the brink of collapse.
In an interview, Mr Mupeta stated that ZAMTEL has never been in any better shape than now.
He said for the first time in its history, ZAMTEL is now able to register an impressive 8,000 new subscribers a day which has seen its subscriber number accelerate to 1, 774,329 as at end of May 2017.
He said the company is focused on attaining the 2 million subscriber target by end of 2017.
Mr Mupeta was reacting to reports that ZAMTEL is headed for total collapse because of poor management and incompetence.
Some sources indicated that the company has been struggling since Government repossessed it from Lapgreen of Libya and appointed Mupanga Mwanakatwe as Chief Executive Officer who early this year separated with the company.
But Mr Mupeta said the allegations are coming from ‘a few people with their own motives.’
He said the company’s subscriber numbers and revenues have been going up since he took over firm three months ago.
Mr Mupeta could however not disclose the company’s revenues.
On allegations that he has not shared his business turnaround strategy with staff and senior managers, Mr Mupeta refuted the allegations saying everyone who works at ZAMTEL knows the vision of the company.
“The Turnaround plan is the first thing I did when I was appointed and I presented it to our shareholder who are the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). As shareholders, the IDC knows our plans and they are fully behind us,” Mr Mupeta said.
He also pointed out that some individuals within ZAMTEL are not happy with some of the measures he has introduced to promote accountability at the company.
The ZAMTEL Chief said he communicates with the employees every morning on key developments in the organisation.
Mr Mupeta revealed that with the approval of the IDC and following public procurement procedures, he has engaged Deloitte to undertake a forensic audit of the company.
“It is understandable that some people will not be happy with what we are doing. As CEO, my mandate is to improve the financial situation at ZAMTEL and promote accountability in everything we do here because at the end of the day ZAMTEL is a public company and people’s money has to be safeguarded,” Mr Mupeta said.
He also defended his decision to effect some transfers at senior management level by moving Ms. Lozhindaba Sakala to Marketing and Evans Muhanga into Sales.
“You know that Lozhindaba was with Telecel for many years and she did Marketing there, so what lack of experience are these people talking about? You will agree that since she took over, the visibility of our brand has improved. The same can be said about Evans, he is an experienced Sales person hence the sales have gone up,” he said.
“Admittedly, some people are not happy that we have moved the Fixed Business from Lusaka to the Copperbelt. This decision was arrived at because we have a lot of business potential in fixed line business especially with the Mines but this unit was neglected for a long time. By moving some senior managers to the Copperbelt to Head this section, we are simply positioning the business for growth,” he said.
He added, “The Copperbelt is critical and so it can’t be run by junior people. We are trying to reinforce Copperbelt.”
He said, “All our revenue sources are secure. People are claiming a lot of things but sincere people will tell you that ZAMTEL has never been better. It is not feasible for a business that is increasing sales to collapse. ZAMTEL will not collapse under my watch.”
Mr Mupeta said the firm’s financial strength has greatly improved and it now that its ability to pay suppliers is getting better than before.
Some sources had alleged that the company’s free fall is accelerating since the appointment of Mr. Mupeta as acting CEO due to poor leadership and lack of business strategy.
They alleged that Mr. Mupeta has no management track record and even for the job of Chief Technical Officer, his substantive position, he only got it because of his connections with former Zamtel MD Dr. Mwanakatwe.
Mr. Mupeta worked as an engineer under Dr Mwanakatwe at Celtel.
“We are not saying Mwanakatwe was any better, but what we are witnessing with Sydney is the highest level of incompetence, since he was appointed, the guy hasn’t provided us with any business vision but instead, he’s just been randomly transferring directors and managers from one position to the other,” said the sources.
“The little power of acting MD has gone to his head and what we are seeing is the village headman-kind of leadership, the guy is running down the company so fast.”
The sources disclosed that without consulting the Board or Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), Mr. Mupeta swapped the positions of Chief Sales Officer Lozhindaba Sakala with that of Chief Marketing Officer Evans Muhanga.
The sources said the Senior Managers have since appealed to Government to speed-up the search for a new Managing Director to save Zamtel from demise adding that the numbers of subscribers are dwindling making the telecommunication company insolvent.
“There is a lot of in-fighting among top managers and generally there’s a lot of uncertainty among employees,” adding: “The sales have been plummeting, both Mwanakatwe and Mupeta do not have what it takes to turn-around ZAMTEL,” they claim.
When is the MD arriving we are informed an ex-zisc chief is set to head this business entity. Those who have worked with him say he specializes in corporate recovery and did wonders at zisc, but if the Board delays any further then Zamtel will need divine intervention to survive. We know the man so please speed up the process and bring him on board.
What a racist organisation this is
None from that picture are white. Disgusting
My company I’m the only black person here
Thanks
BB2014,2016
Sent from my iPhone 8
HH and UPND are the only things falling apart in Zambia
wait, i thought you had a learned man, a PhD heading the institution at some time. what happened? An educated negro is a miseducated one, a regurgitator and a mere tool for the preservation of white supremacy. We need to start training and educating africans to run and manage african affairs. the system of education has to change and those people at higher institutions of learning are not capable of teaching african children for africa. they will just reinfect them with the same miseducation they have gone through.
TO ALL PARASTATAL CHIEFS – WALK THE TALK!!!
========================
Self-praisers are always losers under my watch! Kindly walk the talk. Abalebele tabalanda!
Zambia is a beautiful country with beautiful people.
Bring back Woody Simbeye
When you hear people denying issues like this, fear for the worst. It would be a shame to run down such a viable company
Internet is like water in this century therefore we need to rethink the fate of zamtel everyone wants to be on the Internet and zamtel is the capacity to provide Internet to every home where they are telephone lines, but why are they failing to utilse their potential is it because of lack of meritocracy in appointing the leaders? And hence staff at zamtel are incompetent.
In an interview, Mr Mupeta stated that ZAMTEL has never been in any better shape than now.-I stopped reading right there
How can ZAMTEL collaps when they own almost every telecom facility in the country? Almost every call you make in or to and from Zambia, ZAMTEL benefits in one way.
my friend are you in 2017 or 1999, ?? everyone has there own gateways now. by the way MTN and Airtel have there own fiber backbone across the country, I end there
You are seriously misinformed on that one Sir. Telcos exist symbiotically, they pay each other for carrying traffic, Ever head of “interconnection settlements, co-location and the like”?
Just advertise the position.
Disgruntled people like loh zindaaba are the ones that are spreading such rumors.
If one had to carry out investigation you will agree with what the Acting CEO is saying.
Mupanga is the one that brought down the company… But in the last 2 months things have changed and you can see people working for their salaries.
I am really disappointed with Nubian Princess! Nothing more to say and I think even this blog is my last. I can’t continue exchanging views with people who do not make sense to me. Bye.
I have put the toy you threw out back into your pram
but its the auditor General who said that ZAMTEL is insolvent
I enjoy
I enjoy Zamtel rates. For 5kwacha you can text, talk, browse for one week. I don’t know or care about their financial status.
Whats wrong with this govt…you sack a CEO and always leave that position vacant or promote from within and expect change…really sad. This is why I believe these companies are solely there to be used as cash cows and cadre employment.
Those Zamtel employees are fit. I cant see a single one with a protudung belly unlike here where I work
Are you sure you are looking? Maybe your girlfriend/ wife is in the picture.
Ba kokoliko you are behind boss,thanks betters for updating our colleague
TO ALL PARASTATAL CHIEFS – WALK THE TALK!!!
========================
Self-praisers are always losers! Kindly walk the talk.
The guy is talking about subscriber numbers going up and revenue also going up BUT forgetting that revenue is vanity profit is sanity cash is reality…anyway am not that surprised given that Sydney is an Engineer by training.
Don’t know about Zamtel honestly, but what I DO know is that poor underfive is in for a tougher time and his UPNDonkeys are not and WILL NOT be of any help to the poor boy. When is his next appearance?
Coming to No.msa of South Africa and her boyfriend Irvin, when they are imagining civil war in Zambia, our U20 boys are busy claiming famous scalps in world football and Zambians including donkeys are in a frenzy of excitement and celebration in unity. Is that a country that is about to collapse into civil war? …..UPN.donkeys, you never cease to amaze
Each time Mushota puts her fingers on computer buttons,she writes nonsense.
It was collapsing that’s why invited the Egyptians to invest in the firm.From Zambia Airways ,Zamtel to ZamRail everything we touch becomes rotten even downtown Lusaka looks like a slum area.
I think Zambians like it when the status quo is not disturbed. People were expecting this guy to keep them in their positions, continue eating off kick-backs and walk around like Zamtel is their grandfather’s company. Zambians don’t like shake-ups and even if the place stinks of lethargy and pedantic behaviour, something must be said about moving people around. It jacks them up.
Sydney Papa RASS power
Leave Sydney to work!
The so called sources complaining about him have not provided any figures to back their claims. Deciding to harness the potential on the Copperbelt is a great strategy already,what is wrong with Zambians kanshi?
The problem with most of these so called senior managers is that they expect luxuries at the expense of performance in the company!
How can you provide resources to an acting CEO…how can an interim boss provide direction? Lets be serious…get people from outside even comesa region. This guy is an engineer take him back to being Techical Officer.
Sydney is actually doing very well.The zamtel workforce is actually very motivated and fully behind him.We are seeing changes and moves that we never saw under Dr Mwanakatwe. Sydney is the right man for this job.And yes some senior managers have been shuffled up,this will jack them up and reinvigorate them.We are tired of having useless managers.I hope he can get rid of some of the so called managers.they are simply drawing a salary for nothing!!!Time to fire all useless and lazy employees and hire a young vibrant motivated workforce.We can do it.This is just the beginning!!!
This Sydney doesn’t have what it takes. Even the people who put him there to act are not serious. We need serous Management to turn around Zamtel. The current Management doesn’t have what it takes. Zamtel is the national asset which we must revive.
I am surprised that someone acting in a position can be allowed to make such wholesale changes. I am not saying they are necessarily wrong, but the usual practice is to restrain that power until someone substantive is appointed in the position (which, of course could be the same person)
Blogged this b4 but lt deleted. He says 8000 new subscribers a day, wants to get 2million by end of 2017, currently
1774329 . Based on 8000 per day new customers he will achieve 2 million in 28.2 days. Obviously mathematics not his strong point. Maybe that iz why he can’t show the company figures.
Does anybody releasing a statement read the content before going public