Finance Minister Kamal faults GP, Robi for futile talks to end pay dispute

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has accused Grameenphone and Robi of not cooperating with the authorities to end the dispute with the BTRC over unpaid ‘dues’ through talks.

The government moved to end the dispute, but it could not be resolved because Grameenphone and Robi did not cooperate, said the minister after a meeting of the cabinet committee on purchase at the Secretariat on Wednesday.

“As a result, it will be settled in court.”

The top two mobile telecom operators have had strained relations for quite sometime with the telecom regulator over the audited claims.

The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission earlier claimed Grameenphone had not paid up about Tk 125.8 billion and Robi over Tk 8.67 billion in “dues found in audit”.

In response to the claims, the two networks have been consistently expressing their reservations about the process, methodology and the findings of the auditor.

"The telecom minister and BTRC chairman met on several occasions with Grameenphone and Robi officials,” said the finance minister on being asked by a reporter.

“In those meetings, they were asked to pay some amount as per their estimates. But they did not pay and the talks were deadlocked,” he went on.

“Now, we’ll not be able to settle or resolve the issue as it is now pending in court. It will have to be resolved in court.”

On Sep 18, the finance minister promised to find a ‘win-win situation’ for both sides and hoped for an outcome within a couple of weeks.

In the wake of the unsuccessful negotiation brokered by Kamal, the government started the process to appoint administrators to Grameenphone and Robi to collect the ‘dues’.

The move came hours after the High Court froze for two months a lower court order requiring Grameenphone to pay Tk 125.8 billion in the disputed audit claim.

On the appointment of the administrators, the finance minister said, "It is part of the arbitration. At stake here is a large amount of money. There are a huge gap between their claims and ours.

"If it was a small amount, we could settle it. They want to settle it in court as well. And so do we. So, it is better for everyone, if the matter is resolved by court."

On Sep 5, the BTRC served notices on Grameenphone and Robi, asking them to explain within 30 days why their licences to offer 2G and 3G services will not be revoked for failure to pay up “dues” found in audit despite reminders.

But prior to the issuance of the notice, Robi and Grameenphone filed separate civil suits to settle the dispute on Aug 25 and 26, respectively, calling the BTRC's claims ‘unfounded’ and ‘faulty’.

In a reprisal for the failure of the operators to pay up the “dues” despite reminders, it ordered the International Internet Gateway or IIG operators to limit Grameenphone’s bandwidth capacity by 30 percent and Robi’s 15 percent on July 4.

The operators have a combined customer base of over 120 million.