LDI Companies Oppose PTA’s Conditions for Payment of Rs. 78 Billion Dues
Despite continuous individual hearings at the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) headquarters, little progress has been made in the collection of Rs. 78 billion in unpaid debts from Long Distance International (LDI) telecom businesses.
ProPakistani was informed by sources that although the hearings are intended to settle matters about license renewals and dues payments, disagreements among the parties involved still exist.
Sources claim that because of concerns about a possible National Accountability Bureau (NAB) reference, neither the PTA nor the Ministry of Information Technology are willing to assume responsibility for fixing the issue. Due to LDI firms’ opposition to the PTA’s suggested installment conditions, the alternative of paying the debt in installments has also not gained popularity. The telecom companies showed a lack of agreement and mistrust by turning down the PTA’s offer to propose their own installment plan.
Sources at PTA noted that the overdue dues are not related to the authority but come under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of IT. PTA has underlined that the Ministry must make a policy decision regarding any waiver of dues; it cannot make such a decision on its own. Additionally, PTA officials advise that the best way to evade NAB scrutiny is to revoke the licenses of businesses that don’t pay their debts in full.
The nine LDI enterprises owe a total of Rs. 78 billion, of which Rs. 24 billion is the principle and Rs. 54 billion is the amount of late payment surcharges. These businesses’ licenses have already expired, and the PTA has made paying the dues a requirement for license renewal.
In the meantime, the businesses have gone to court to ask for relief from the PTA’s terms and the payments.
Five of the nine LDI companies have expressed a desire to pay the principal in installments; nevertheless, even these companies have protested to the terms associated with the installment system of PTA. Installment-based payments have been flatly rejected by the other four businesses.
Ministry of IT officials are worried that giving waivers or permitting such flexibility would create a precedent for defaults in the future. According to sources, the PTA chairman has suggested that the federal IT minister and the leadership of LDI enterprises meet jointly in an effort to break the deadlock.
