GECOMSA will be audited to find out the reason for its bankruptcy – Anti-Corruption Portal Public Administration of Equatorial Guinea

GECOMSA will be audited to find out the reason for its bankruptcy

GECOMSA will be audited to find out the reason for its bankruptcy

The company GECOMSA will be audited to find out the reason for its bankruptcy. This was one of the conclusions reached by the State Defence and Security Officer on Friday, after analysing the preliminary report made to the state-owned telecommunications operator.
The meeting, held at the People’s Palace in Malabo, served as a platform for the company’s board of directors to respond to questions about how the point of bankruptcy was reached, where the profits are and what the current value of the company’s assets is.
According to the director of the telephone company, from 2013 to 2020 the State, which at that time was the sole and majority shareholder of the company, acquired a debt of 12,244 million francs in services. Both this, and the debts that the company itself contracted with Ortel and Gitge, added to the obsolete technology of its system, forced the closure of its doors.
In terms of the economy, the Vice President of Equatorial Guinea was informed that the payments they received from the State were made under the compensation system. On the other hand, the income from the commercial part was not enough to cover the maintenance costs of the system, nor did it allow for profits. Consequently, the board of directors made the decision to seek external investment to get the company up and running, pay its debts and return to the market.
For his part, Nguema Obiang Mangue reminded those present that at the beginning of this company, 51% of the shares belonged to the State, while ICTE had 41%. Due to the abandonment of ICTE on April 18, 2023 by decree, the State is declared the sole partner of the company, whose share was for military use.
For this reason, said the Head of Defense and Security, the board of directors should not negotiate partnerships with any company without the supervision and approval of the State.
In this regard, Nguema Obiang Mangue said, GECOMSA will remain under the supervision of GETESA while the audit work is carried out that will help decide the future of the state telephone company.
Apart from this measure, the member of the government has also proposed that an inventory of the company be made, which will help in making the correct decision after the report that the commission will present in two weeks. Since, he said, the State will have to decide between selling the company through an international tender or recovering it for the same services, but with a more updated system.

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