This archive report was first published on 5 September 2019.
Published on September 5, 2019, Safaricom has raised concerns over the proposed merger between Airtel and Telkom Kenya, citing a Ksh.1.3 billion debt owed to the company.
Acting Safaricom Chief Executive Officer Michael Joseph stated that the company is not opposed to the merger but has raised three concerns, including the outstanding debt.
According to Joseph, the debt of KES 1,297,448,468.88 was incurred for the provision of various services, including interconnection, co-location, and fibre services.
“While we are supportive of industry changes that seek to deliver greater choice and value to consumers, we have raised valid concerns that we hope the regulator will consider and address as part of the approval process,” reads the statement.
Another concern raised by Safaricom is the need to rebalance the frequencies allocation between the three companies.
“The second is the need to rebalance the frequencies allocation. Post-merger, AirtelTelkom will jointly hold 77.5 MHz of the spectrum against a customer base of 17.3 million, compared to Safaricom’s 57.5 MHz with almost double the customer base at 31.8 million,” added Michael Joseph.
Safaricom is also calling for equal treatment of operators and creation of a level playing field within the industry, specifically in relation to licensing and operations requirements.
