Times Of Swaziland: SIBAYA CONTRIBUTIONS HELPED GIVE BIRTH TO SWAZI MOBILE

SIBAYA CONTRIBUTIONS HELPED GIVE BIRTH TO SWAZI MOBILE
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BY BONGIWE DLAMINI on 28/07/2017 09:08:00


MBABANE – Contributions made during Sibaya last year regarding the
demonopolisation of the telecommunications industry made it possible for Swazi
Mobile to finally start operating.
Many Swazis had voiced out their wish for another company to enter the market
and compete with Swazi MTN. This was according to Swazi Mobile Chairman Victor
Gamedze who was speaking during the unveiling of packages yesterday at Gigi’s
Restaurant in Ezulwini.
Gamedze thanked all who had made the attainment of the Swazi Mobile going live
dream come true. He said if it were not for the pressure exerted on the
management, the company would not be where it was today.
Most importantly, he showed appreciation to Swazi MTN for holding the fort in
the country for so long. He said the company’s presence was the reason that
the need for another mobile service network provider was identified. He said it
was through Swazi MTN’s existence that Swazi Mobile made this accomplishment.
Further, Gamedze said the achievement was humbling in that in a short space of
time, it had been able to go live, as compared to other operators who exceeded
six months. He attributed this success to Members of Parliament for advocating
for another mobile service provider in the country.
In addition, Gamedze said contributions made by members of the public during the
Sibaya session that was held last year also contributed in making Swazi
Mobile’s dream a reality. “Swazis should thank Swazi MTN for keeping the
country burning,” he said, much to the accord of the audience.
The chairperson said it was worth noting that Swazi MTN was one of the best
service providers in the world when it came to service delivery and integrity as
compared to the networks in other countries.
Moreover, Gamedze highlighted that Swazi Mobile was not quite new in the
telecommunications industry, but had been in existence for some time only under
a different name. He assured attendants that Swazi Mobile had kept all its
promises made to Swazis five months ago. These promises included that the
company would avail an opportunity to ordinary Swazis to make investments in the
company for as low as E600.
He said to this effect, Swazis would start positioning themselves to stand a
better chance of being part of the 100 000 Swazis who own shares in the company
when the network goes live, and will have until November 30 to be able to strike
a deal with the company.
At least 50 per cent of the shares will be reserved for Mbabane and Manzini
folk, while the rest will be distributed around the country. He said when the
reserved shares for the remaining regions were sold out; no one else would be
able to purchase them. He assured people from remote areas that they should not
panic as they would have equal access to the shares as people in the cities.
He encouraged Swazis to make use of this rare opportunity by being part of the
initiative, as no one knew when such a chance would come around again. However,
he said when it eventually came, people who would already be shareholders would
be given preference for acquiring the shares.
Gamedze further emphasised that yesterday’s event was not a launch of the
company. “This place is too small for the Swazi Mobile launch,” he said.
He said the event was not a launch but only a tariff unveiling event. Gamedze
said if it were a launch, a much bigger venue would do.