Vodacom says IPO still underway

FAUSTINE KAPAMA

VODACOM Tanzania Public Limited Company (VCT) has said they will continue to work with all stakeholders to ensure the sale of shares is completed successfully despite of attachment orders sought in a suit lodged by a businessman Moto Mabanga recently.

In a statement issued in Dar es Salaam on Tuesday, the company’s Managing Director (MD), Ian Ferrao stated that VCT Initial Public Offering (IPO) was still underway. “The management of Vodacom Tanzania PLC will continue to work with all stakeholders in order to ensure the transaction is completed successfully.

We believe that the Tanzania high court will act swiftly to resolve this matter which is related to an ongoing case,” he said. He clarified that Mabanga’s claim is principally against Vodacom International Limited (VIL) and not VCT.

The case was originally initiated in the Johannesburg High Court and eventually settled amicably following a ruling of the Kinshasa/Gombe Commercial Court, Democratic Republic of the Congo (“DRC”).

“Following this settlement, Mr Moto Mabanga’s purported repudiation of the settlement agreement was dismissed by the arbitral tribunal of the International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”) which not only found that the settlement agreement was valid, but also directed (him) to pay damages,” he said.

Such damages, according to the MD, over time have accumulated to an amount in excess of 7 million US dollars. He stated that Namemco Energy PTY Limited is challenging the ICC ruling in the Court of Appeals in Paris, France.

Mr Mabanga has filed an application before the High Court’s Commercial Division, seeking orders for attachment of 1,092,000,130 shares of Vodacom Tanzania Public Limited Company to recover a debt amounting to over 40bn/- he is demanding.

The businessman is requesting the court to grant a temporary injunction, restraining Vodacom Group Limited from listing the shares held by Vodacom Tanzania Public Limited Company at the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange or enlisting or dealing with them in whatever manner.

Mr Mabanga, acting as Receiver of Namemco Energy PTY Limited, is further seeking for orders to appoint him a receiver of the shares in question and order Vodacom Tanzania Public Limited Company to pay all the dividends, meaning from the said shares to him.

Pursuant to appointment thereof, the applicant is requesting the court to order Vodacom Group Limited to hand over the share certificates and any other document of title for the shares to him, pending determination of his main suit to facilitate the receivership.

In the main suit, the businessman is seeking for judgment and decree for the court to open the veils of incorporation of Vodacom Group Limited and Vodacom Congo DRC SPRL and that the court should find that the two companies are practically one and the same.

Mr Mabanga is further requesting the court to order the execution of the judgment given by Kinshasa Commercial Court by attachment and sale of the shares held by the Vodacom Companies to realise a decretal amount of 20,080,000 US dollars.

In his affidavit to support the application, the businessman states that he has filed a suit to enforce the judgment given by Kinshasa Commercial Court on January 24, 2012 and confirmed on appeal on September 27, 2013. He accounts that Vodacom Tanzania Public Limited Company has initiated the sale of its shares to the public otherwise known as Initial Public Offer (IPO).

Pursuant thereto, Vodacom Group Limited intends to offer for sale its shares by listing the same to the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange on April 19, this year.