Issued by SATRA
21 November 2000
The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) would like to announce that it will now participate in the third cellular litigation, after receiving assurances from government that it would receive the requisite funding to participate in the proceedings.
Previously ICASA announced that it was to withdraw from the court case. The Authority emphasised that this withdrawal was not a concession to any of the charges leveled by Nextcom against any of the respondents.
The decision to withdraw was made after the regulator had been refused a supplementary budget by the government, including a request to fund the court case. The government has now made a commitment to ensure that ICASA has the necessary resources to fulfil its regulatory functions and to defend itself against alleged irregularities in the process of awarding the third cell licence. The Authority will request a further two-week postponement to enable it to draft the necessary answering affidavits.
The costs of defending the case were obviously not included in the annual budget allocation to the Authority, as such costs are unforeseen. ICASA thus required additional funds to enable it to respond to the allegations. Many of the charges by Nextcom relate to procedural issues for administrative bodies on which there is little or no jurisprudence. The Authority would like to ensure that the court decides on such issues in order to ensure that there is regulatory clarity for itself and players in the broadcasting and telecommunications industry.
ICASA would like to emphasise that it is crucial that the court case is concluded as rapidly as possible, in order to ensure that a third cellular phone operator is licensed and there is competition in the market. The viability of any new operator could be threatened with the delays in licensing.