Alcatel wades into MTN debacle
Alcatel One Touch has defended itself against allegations that it contravened MTN‘s procurement policy and supplied the operator with inferior products.
Alcatel One Touch designs, manufactures and markets an expanding portfolio of mobile and Internet products.
An article published in Business Day on 23 August 2013, implicated Alcatel One Touch as a supplier of modems that contravened MTN’s procurement policy – part of a reason for the investigation of former GM for branded retail channel, Eleanor Potter, launched in 2012.
Potter has since left MTN.
According to BusinessDay, the investigation was over a R120 million tender irregularity, while Potter also stood accused of putting data modems that were “against network capabilities” and “had failed laboratory tests”, to market.
“It has been alleged that Ms (Mitrovich) Potter directed the purchase of laptop computers to a vendor that lost out on the quotation process. The vendor did not have a contract with MTN,” read documents seen by Business Day.
“An estimated amount of R120 million was spent on the vendor in question as opposed to the R8 million spent on the approved and contracted vendor within the same period.”
The letter also alleged that Potter engaged Alcatel with the view of purchasing data modems in contravention of MTN’s procurement policy.
Alcatel One Touch country manager for Southern Africa, Ernst Wittmann, however, denies such allegations:
“We would like to place on record that all modem products referred to in the previous article were supplied based on the requirements of MTN SA at that time, and we did not contravene the MTN procurements policy in any way.”
In relation to the statement that data modems received “unfavourable laboratory test results and against network capabilities, Wittmann said: “Before any products are sold to any network operator and eventually to the end consumer, stringent network tests are conducted in the specific network test labs to ensure favourable network compliance.”
He said this in-depth process takes many months before the product is available in store.
“Once this is completed, an official type approval certificate is issued to Alcatel One Touch before production and shipping takes place. All certificates are available for your perusal should you wish to see them” he said.
The group said it continues to uphold its mandate to make mobile technology accessible to all and will apply best practice in all its business dealings to ensure that consumers receive products that are compliant to the necessary standards and of the best quality.
Earlier, MTN said in a statement of its own:
“MTN confirms that certain allegations were made against Eleanor Potter, in 2012. As with any other allegation, the company took these seriously and accordingly investigated during the course of last year.
“The investigation concluded that the allegations were unfounded.”
MTN has been beset by internal scandal over the past several months, with the group suspending its chief corporate services officer in South Africa, Robert Madzonga, for allegedly authorizing R12.3 million in questionable payments to a legal friend.
And in July, the world’s sixth-largest mobile company announced that group chief financial officer and executive financial director, Nazir Patel had resigned amid an internal investigation.
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