MTN Uganda CEO, Wim Vanhelleputte, has been expelled from Uganda to Belgium indefinitely. Though the Ugandan Police says it is national security matter, MTN says it has not been given an official reason for this.
According to Uganda’s state-owned New Vision newspaper on Friday, Vanhelleputte was placed on a plane to Belgium after police, military and anti-terror unit officers questioned him.
The Police spokesman Fred Enanga said that the Police will issue a detailed report after further investigation.
Wim is the fourth MTN Uganda executive to be deported this year after the removal in January of Chief Marketing Officer Olivier Prentout, Sales and Distribution Manager Annie Bilenge Tabura and Corporate Services Manager Elisa Muzzolini, according to the Kampala-based newspaper.
MTN Uganda has about 10.8 million subscribers out of a total of more than 225 million across the continent and the Middle East.
Bloomberg reports that the loss of the local CEO comes as MTN pursues a plan to give up some control of the Ugandan business, with a view to increase domestic ownership. That may result in a private placement of shares or a stock-market listing in Kampala, the capital, an MTN spokeswoman said in an emailed response to questions. The carrier is also in discussions about an extension to its Uganda license, and agreed a three-month extension last month to enable talks to continue.
The MTN Group has recently come under attack in different countries, the biggest from Nigeria where it recently was ordered to pay $8.1 billion to the CBN for alleged improper repatriation of dividends between 2007 and 2015. Fortunately it ended up paying $53 million after discussion and resolution.
