Thought so...GEEZ!

So I have read the breaking news on ITWeb re the MTN/Telkom deal. Just as I stated last night in my post - read two spots down below - I knew this was a political fallout vs business rationale or finances.

Can you believe this quote? "“The MTN/Telkom deal was being worked out with the full knowledge and participation of the ANC. As government, we saw the relationship with Vodafone and Telkom as financial, but not strategic. We believed – and still believe – that a Telkom and MTN merger would provide better strategic opportunities to government,” he says.

So I would like to politely ask...WHAT THE HELL IS GOVERNMENT DOING HERE? What happened to the consumer...the citizen? What are "strategic opportunities to government"...? Profits? For who exactly?

All of this is simply political...nothing more...nothing less! Prediction: We'll see a few BEE beneficiaries whilst the affluent citizen pays ridiculous telco prices, economic potential stagnates even longer and the long tail of our country never benefiting from the economic promises of being connected.

This will continue...check it out; "The price of an international leased line in South Africa is 253percent higher than the average global price. Business cellphone services cost 107percent more than the global average and retail ADSL services and business ADSL services are 119percent and 97percent more expensive respectively."

I AM SICK AND TIRED OF THIS! I'll be blogging some more later about this - sitting in the reception of a media/content house...that is rumoured to be on the acquisition target listing of some very senior politicians...probably also for the "strategic opportunities" it presents!

AAAARGH!

Note: Pervasive, ubiquitous, accessible and cost effective broadband connectivity is a human right...not a privilege! Any infringement on this by any individual, commercial entity or government should be considered a violation of human rights!