Lippe vows to clear the air this week

BRIAN BENZA and MONKAGEDI GAOTLHOBOGWE
Staff Writers | Wednesday February 3, 2010 00:00

 

Lippe was suspended on Monday in unexplained circumstances. Yesterday, he refused to give reasons for his suspension and referred all questions to the BTC board with the promise that he will spill the beans before the end of the week. 'You will have to speak to the board if you want a comment because I am still an employee and I am bound by the confidentiality rules. But I can assure you that I will leave no stone unturned in a bid to clear my name. You know how I do things. You should be hearing from me before the end of the week. I will let the media know the truth in the coming few days,' he said

BTC board chairman Leonard Makwinja has refused to shed light on the suspension. A statement released by the BTC board yesterday was reticent, only going as far as saying the matter is under internal investigations. 'The board is not in a position to disclose the details of the suspension. The issue which has been brought to our attention has necessitated us to respond promptly. This is in adherence to the BTC corporate governance procedure. The process dictates that an employee under investigation should be isolated from the business, so as to provide an enabling environment for a fair and just investigation,' read the statement.

With no official explanation on the suspension, speculation has been rife over why Lippe was suspended.

Unconfirmed reports say that Lippe's troubles emanate from a failed deal to buy World Cup tickets online from an overseas company. The deal went sour leading to nearly P2 million in losses for BTC. It is alleged that BTC lost P1.8 million to fraudsters in the scam. The tickets bought from the deal were intended to be used in BTC and be MOBILE promotions. Unconfirmed reports indicate that the board came to learn about the World Cup tickets' scandal from other sources because the BTC management attempted to sweep the matter under the carpet.

Sources say the scandal resulted in the exposure of other improprieties by the BTC management which are now under investigation. It is alleged that there was something improper in the recent deal signed by  BTC and Zimbabwe's Powertel. Lippe has laughed off the allegation and said: 

'Again I can't comment on all those allegations'. The $5 million two-year agreement with Powertel is for the provision of international bandwidth capacity to Zimbabwe after the two organisations completed cross- border fibre connections at Ramokgwebana in December. Yesterday speculation was rife that a commercial manager previously shown the door by Lippe at BTC has been reinstated. However, BTC marketing manager, Anno Tshipa and Makwinja were not forthcoming when approached for comment. Lippe was not immediately available to comment on the report. His phone was answered by a woman who said he was not available.

Meanwhile, Keabetswe Segole, the group general manager in charge of technology, has been appointed the acting BTC boss for the duration of the investigation. Other reports say that Lippe may join a local financial institution.