The Chief Executive Officer of AirtelTigo, Ms Roshi Motman, has given an assurance that issues related to employee retrenchment and redundancy packages following the merger were currently being worked out and management would ensure that there was a good balance at the end of the day.

She said mergers and acquisitions usually come up with a number of challenges and although it was a difficult process, management would ensure a good balance at the end of the integration process to ensure that all parties are well satisfied after the retrenchment exercise.

In an interaction with members of the Network of Communication Reporters (NCR) during a courtesy call on the management of the company in Accra on Thursday, Ms Motman said “the issues are solvable and we are taking a serious look at it to find a good balance.”

She stated that it was also very important for journalists to crosscheck the facts on issues arising out of the merger in order not to create distortions that might create confusion in the minds of the company’s stakeholders.

Superior service delivery


The AirtelTigo CEO noted that the new company will leverage the synergies of the two merged entities (Airtel/Tigo) to deliver superior services and wider coverage to customers.

She said the two businesses as one entity presented a better opportunity to better serve customers and noted that AirtelTigo would ensure that “it takes full advantage of the merger.”

Ms Motman said despite the difficulties usually associated with the merger process, management was ensuring that the opportunities presented were fully exploited.

“We believe that these two businesses together are better than one of them standing alone. So we want more customers and much happier customers. Obviously, we want to have economies of scale; we will also be making sure that the market in itself is not as fragmented,” she said.

She said access to fibre services under the new entity was going to be ‘massive’ because both companies had competencies in different areas of fibre access, “something that would help us to boost our presence in the market”.

Engaging with industry


The Dean of the Network of Communication Reporters (NCR), Mr Charles Benoni Okine, said the group comprised journalists reporting on business and finance in the country, with interest in the telecommunications sector.

The network, he said, enabled members to have access to information from industry players who often explained issues about developments and new trends in the market.

“We serve as the intermediary between the players in the industry and their customers. At the end of the day, we want to see the sector grow and that is the main objective of the group,” he said.

NCR, he said, would continue to engage industry players to serve both customers and readers with a balanced reportage on issues relating to the telecom sector.

“We like engaging because we believe that as professional journalists we don’t have to write one-sided stories, so through our network, we are able to get in touch with the players in the industry to give the public a balance and not create unnecessary confusion in the public domain,” he said.

Source: Graphic Business