New information that has
throw hot water on the dodgy nature TeliaSonera's business in
Uzbekistan - A culture of bribery and corruption
Wednesday, 22 May 2013
New information on TeliaSonera's controversial business in
Uzbekistan has emerged in which various Swedish media sources are
reporting that the company negotiated as recently as last August with
Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of the country's dictator for exclusive
business access.
TeliaSonera's business with the former Soviet state of Uzbekistan has
hit the company hard and as investigation continues about the nature of
how TeliaSonera approached its business in the country based on the
company's ethical requirement, more information is emerging as to the
extent of corruption the company was involved in.
CEO Lars Nyberg and Chairman Anders Narvinger were forced to leave
their posts earlier this year after an investigation was not able to
rule out that the offence of corruption and bribery was involved when
the company was purchasing a mobile licenses in Uzbekistan.
Known then was about transactions made in 2007 and 2010. But according
to Gulnara Karimova's personal documents in which the Swedish
television's investigative program, Uppdrag granskning saw, it shows
that negotiations were carried out as recently as August 2012 about
business deals preferences for the company in Uzbekistan.
Image from Swedish Television >>>
According to the documents, the negotiations were carried out was to
enable TeliaSonera to have more access to telephone subscribers as well
as that TeliaSonera would be paying millions for the new subscribers.
It will enter into sponsorship agreements and pay bribes in order to
avoid problems with the authorities in the country.
TeliaSonera's acting CEO Per-Arne Blomquist says that the company is
not negotiating with the dictator's daughter. "In my world, we have
never negotiated with Karimova."
The message from TeliaSonera's new management at the AGM in April
was that the controversial Uzbekistan affair was a one-off issue. CEO
Lars Nyberg had been forced to resign and the company signalled a fresh
start.
But Swedish television says the uncovered a documents dated 2012
indicates that TeliaSonera's suspicious business with Uzbekistan was
anything but a one-time event but rather a widespread corruption
culture deeply embedded in the company's management system.
Already known is that company's with Uzbekistan which was carried
out such that more that Skr2 billion were paid to a company that was
directly related to the dictator's daughter, Gulnara Karimova.
But this particular that has recently emerged is a document that
seems to come directly from Gulnaras desk, which looks like an internal
financial reconciliation with her own handwritten notes.
TeliaSonera will pay Gulnara Karimova equivalent of Skr35 million
for subscribers TeliaSonera received, after the regime shut down
competing telecom companies.
It also appears that TeliaSonera will pay for Gulnaras cultural
activities such as concerts to be performed by international artists
with "sponsorship." Three times a year the company will give money to
three different organizations, which Gulnara chooses.
The program with the new information will transmitted on Swedish television at 20 hours on Wednesday night.
By Scancomark.com Team