ICASA releases code of conduct

Johannesburg, 20 Jul 2001

The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) became one year old this week, but chose to celebrate the event in the most conservative manner possible.

At a stakeholder forum last night, the body released a 20-page code of conduct for its councillors which calls on them to be very careful in navigating the minefield of interests that is the billion rand telecommunications industry.

Among the requirements of the code is full disclosure of any possible conflicts of interest, extreme care in accepting gifts or invitations, and severe caution in communicating with any party involved in licence applications or other ICASA matters.

In his preface to the document, chairman Mandla Langa says it is "intended to guide and assist each of us when confronted with ethical dilemmas in an increasingly complex operational environment, and also to serve as a public commitment to the highest standards of conduct".

It is clear that ICASA learned hard lessons from the treatment its predecessor, the SA Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (SATRA), received during the selection process for the third cellular licence, when it was accused of underhanded action and bias by just about all the parties involved.

Only one councillor, Willie Currie, survived the transition from SATRA to ICASA, with communications minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri being clear in her disapproval of the organisation.

Telkom IPO, but spectrum too

In his address at the event, Langa said Telkom`s planned public listing would dominate the body`s telecommunications activities in the immediate future as number portability, carrier pre-select, and leasing guidelines and regulations are compiled.

Speculation was fuelled when his choice of words included "licensing additional PSTS operators" in the plural.

"You all read the Business Day," Currie joked when directly asked to comment on the possibility of there being more than one competitor to Telkom.

However, while the fixed-line market hogs the limelight, work is also underway in the area of cellular spectrum. Langa says recommendations from SABRE 2, the second South African Band Re-planning Exercise, could be adopted by mid-August. Final adoption of the plan would give players a clear idea of future spectrum allocations.

Neil Smuts, the councillor heading up the team working on frequency matters, said SABRE 2 did include "some provisions" for third-generation (3G) mobile services, but that a lot had still to be debated before frequency blocks were permanently blocked off for 3G.

"It is still early days," he said. "It is not necessarily the answer to leap into [3G] at this stage."

However, Smuts said the issue of Cell C`s frequency spectrum licence was "imminent", and that MTN and Vodacom had only to wait on government`s final policy directions and legislative amendments before they too would be given space in the high-data capacity frequency.

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