Addressing journalists in parliament yesterday, minority leader, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu stated that in 1996, when NDC sold 30% shares of GT to Telecom Malaysia, the transaction never came to parliament, nor was it subjected to public debate. As such, for the NDC to turn around and criticize the Vodafone deal, is just throwing dirt into the eyes of the general public.

According to him, the interpretations that the committee gave with respect to article 6.1.6, which states that "There shall not be any injunction or order that prohibits or restrains the sale of the sole shares by Government Of Ghana (GOG) to the purchaser in particular or general," is different from how the minority sees it.

He added that their interpretation of that article is that the transaction could not close if the sales shares of 70% were encumbered in any way at the time of the transaction." This is, therefore, a condition precedent to the signing of the agreement," he stressed.

The minority leader observed that the government can, therefore, not interpret it to mean that the courts of Ghana are barred from examining any matter relating to the transaction after it has been signed. Touching on the indemnity clause, the minority said the report created the impression that the government cannot prosecute anyone who might have committed an offence involving GT/ Vodafone.

He contended that the sale and purchase agreement was done entirely within the laws of Ghana which run contrary to the assertion of the committee that the agreement went against many laws of Ghana, including the 1992 constitution, the NCA Act and Regulation and the Internal Revenue Act.

Mr. Kyei Mensah Bonsu, said the claim by the committee that the indemnity clause is not balanced as it seeks to protect the interest of the buyer and not the mutual interest of both parties is not conclusive. He argued that the nature of indemnity clause in the agreement is standard in such agreements; as such the committee should have given an indication as to which items the government should have sought indemnity on.

The minority, however, debunked the Committee's assertion that Vodafone PLC and Vodafone International BV were not the same company that the government of Ghana dealt with during the sale and purchase transaction between the two entities. He said Parliament in the discharge of its duties acted diligently in the said transaction adding "we were satisfied that Vodafone BV is a 100% owned subsidiary of Vodafone PLC".

The minority also disagreed with the Ministerial committee's valuation of GT which concluded that the sale price was low because the transaction adviser had put a higher value of the GT's assets and that Telecom SA offered a higher amount of $947 for 67% shares of the said contract.

"We disagree on this conclusion of the value of GT. The transaction Advisor had put a value of $769 and added a negotiable 40% goodwill, taking value to a negotiable amount of $1,075 billion," noted the Minority Leader. He explained that the Transaction Advisors themselves, after superintending the tender process yielded the highest tender of $520 million from France Telecom.

The Minority Leader debunked claims by the committee of Executive interference with the former President John Agyekum Kufuor being the one who agreed on the transaction price which was irregular. "We find this conclusion very strange, preposterous, and absurd it is important to state categorically that President Kufuor did not solely decide on the price, on his own technical and legal assumptions."

He said the opposition was glad when they heard of the news that that the British Serious Fraud Office may be interested in investigating the Vodafone GT transaction. "We welcome it wholeheartedly," the Minority Leader added.

Meanwhile, an investment lawyer, Nana Asante Bediatuo on Peace Fm yesterday noted that re-engagement of the Vodafone Plc concerning the 70 percent stake in GT cannot hold unless Vodafone Plc opens its arms for re-negotiations.

According to him, since the sale and purchase Agreement of GT was ratified by Parliament and paid for by Vodafone, the Government cannot order for re-engagement or negotiations into the whole transaction.

"A contract is a contract, and once you do a contract of this nature, you cannot go back over it. So, on contractual basis, if Vodafone comes out to say that they are not ready for negotiations, there is nothing you can do about it," he noted.

"All of the three major wireless carriers will see their ARPUs decrease over the next five years. We forecast that the industry average monthly ARPU will fall from EUR18.52 in 2008 to EUR14.23 in 2013. Although Vodafone Portugal will continue to receive the highest level of ARPU in the country, we forecast that its monthly ARPU will still decline from EUR20.42 in 2008 to EUR15.94 in 2013. Monthly ARPUs at TMN and Optimus will also decline to EUR13.52 and EUR12.85 respectively in 2013," said Mr. Assanie.

IEMR's Portugal Mobile Operator Forecast covers 50 financial and operational metrics on wireless operators in Portugal - TMN -TelecomunicaAAues Moveis Nacionais S.A., Vodafone Portugal ComunicaAAues Pessoais, S.A., and Optimus TelecomunicaAAues, S.A. Notable highlights of the 4Q09 Portugal Mobile Operator Forecast include:

* Our model does not predict significant changes in market shares over the next five years. Our model forecasts that TMN will continue to be the largest operator in Portugal's wireless space with a subscriber market share of approximately 44.1% over the next five years. We expect that Vodafone Portugal's market share will decrease slightly from 35.5% to 35.1% while that of Optimus rises from 20.3% to 20.8% over the forecast period, 2008 - 2013.

* We forecast that the industry average EBITDA margin (calculated as EBITDA/reported revenue) will improve slightly from 37.0% in 2008 to 37.3% in 2013. TMN will continue to enjoy a higher level of profitability than Vodafone Portugal and Optimus. Our model forecasts that EBITDA margins at TMN, Vodafone Portugal, and Optimus will be approximately 43.0%, 34.0%, and 30.1% in 2013.

IEMR's Global Mobile Operator Forecast covers 50 operational metrics of 200+ mobile operators in 50 countries, making up 80% of the world's population. Forecasts are based on our proprietary, country-specific forecasting models. These models deploy multiple regression analysis and cross-impact matrices that estimate relationships between subscriber data, technology use and deployment data, overall economic and demographic changes expected in a particular country; and relate these to company operational and financial metrics.

To purchase this report, visit our website at: http://www.iemarketresearch.com/Members/Reports/ViewReportDetail.aspx?RID=1291&flag=1

Companies Covered in this Country Mobile Operator Forecast

TMN -Telecomunicacoes Moveis Nacionais S.A.

Vodafone Portugal, Comunicacoes Pessoais, S.A.

Optimus Telecomunicacoes, S.A.

Annual Results & Forecasts for each of the above operators is covered in this report for: CY 2001-CY 2013. Quarterly Results & Forecasts are covered for: March 2003 - June 2011

PREPAID AND POSTPAID SUBSCRIBERS

SUBSCRIBER GROWTH (YoY)

SUBSCRIBERS BY OPERATOR

SUBSCRIBER GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY)

NET SUBSCRIBER ADDS BY OPERATOR

NET SUBSCRIBER ADDS GROWTH BY OPERATOR

MONTHLY CHURN BY OPERATOR *

POST-PAID SUBSCRIBERS BY OPERATOR

POST-PAID SUBSCRIBER GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY)

PREPAID/WHOLESALE SUBSCRIBERS BY OPERATOR

PREPAID/WHOLESALE SUBSCRIBER GROWTH BY OPERATOR

POST-PAID % OF TOTAL SUBSCRIBERS BY OPERATOR

PREPAID/WHOLESALE % OF TOTAL SUBSCRIBERS BY OPERATOR

POST-PAID NET ADDS BY OPERATOR

POST-PAID ADDS GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY)

PREPAID/WHOLESALE NET ADDS BY OPERATOR

PREPAID/WHOLESALE ADDS GROWTH BY OPERATOR

MONTHLY ARPU BY OPERATOR

MONTHLY ARPU GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY %)

DATA % OF SERVICE REVENUES BY OPERATOR

MONTHLY DATA ARPU BY OPERATOR

DATA ARPU GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY)

MONTHLY VOICE ARPU BY OPERATOR

VOICE ARPU GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY)

VOICE REVENUE PER MINUTE BY OPERATOR

VOICE REVENUE PER MINUTE GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY)

MOU PER SUBSCRIBER BY OPERATOR (MINUTES/MONTH)

MOU/SUBSCRIBER GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY %)

SHARE OF TOTAL SUBSCRIBERS BY OPERATOR

HHI INDEX BY SUBSCRIBER SHARE

SHARE OF NET ADDS BY OPERATOR

SHARE OF POST-PAID NET ADDS BY OPERATOR

SHARE OF PREPAID/WHOLESALE NET ADDS BY OPERATOR

SHARE OF SERVICE REVENUE BY OPERATOR

HHI INDEX BY SERVICE REVENUE SHARE

YoY CHANGE IN REVENUE SHARE BY OPERATOR

REPORTED REVENUE BY OPERATOR (REPORTING CURRENCY)

SERVICE REVENUE BY OPERATOR (REPORTING CURRENCY)

EBITDA BY OPERATOR (REPORTING CURRENCY)

CAPEX BY OPERATOR (REPORTING CURRENCY)

SERVICE REVENUE GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY)

EBITDA GROWTH BY OPERATOR (YoY)

EBITDA/REPORTED REVENUE BY OPERATOR

EBITDA/SERVICE REVENUE BY OPERATOR

EBITDA/INCREMENTAL SERVICE REVENUE BY OPERATOR

CAPEX/REPORTED REVENUE BY OPERATOR

CAPEX/SERVICE REVENUE BY OPERATOR

(EBITDA-CAPEX)/REPORTED REVENUE BY OPERATOR

EBITDA MARGIN EXPANSION/CONTRACTION BY OPERATOR

REPORTED REVENUE BY OPERATOR (USD)

ARPU BY OPERATOR (USD)

DATA ARPU BY OPERATOR (USD)

VOICE REV/MINUTE BY OPERATOR (USD)

SERVICE REVENUE BY OPERATOR (USD)

EBITDA BY OPERATOR (USD)

CAPEX BY OPERATOR (USD)

* Available only for TMN -TelecomunicaAAues Moveis Nacionais S.A. and Vodafone Portugal, ComunicaAAues Pessoais, S.A.

CONTACT: Mr. Nizar Assanie, Vice President (Research), IE Market Research Tel: +1 604 327 4367 e-mail: info@iemarketresearch.com

((M2 Communications disclaims all liability for information provided within M2 PressWIRE. Data supplied by named party/parties. Further information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at http://www.presswire.net on the world wide web. Inquiries to info@m2.com.