GTT welcomes passage of Telecoms Bill; wants contract to be honored

The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT) said on Wednesday it welcomes the passage of the Telecommunications (amendment) Bill 15/2016 which was passed in the National Assembly on Monday.

However, the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Justin Nedd, during a Press Conference stated that GTT is looking forward to further engagements with the government and is optimistic about the Government honouring its’ contract with the service provider.

“In order to get the liberalization, after the passage of the bill, we have to talk to the government, work out some negotiations and hopefully, we’ll get that done soon. And again I emphasise, we are ready to do that very quickly” Nedd said.

Nedd says too he and the company are also optimistic that government will honour the rule of law regarding its contract with GTT as this could impact future deals within the sector.

“Doing the negotiations and respecting the rule of law contract is something that is critical for the country. If any country wants foreign direct investment, it is important for investors to understand that if I have contract with the government, it will be honored” he expounded.

However, he was quick to clarify that the company is not asking for the monopoly to remain, noting that “right now there are many grey areas we trying to resolve and we’ve been operating in those grey areas for several years, so we’re optimistic that with liberalization, it will be clear. Businesses need predictability so once we have predictable operating environment, we know that we can focus on driving the business,  providing good services and satisfying the customers.”

Meanwhile, Digicel Guyana in a statement yesterday said it too welcomes the passage of the long awaited Bill which “is the first step in the long overdue ending of the telephone monopoly, which is a laudable achievement and a position that Digicel supports.”

That company too said it now awaits the engagement with the Government of Guyana to discuss its license and regulations for an open competitive sector.