Cambodia's state-owned telecom firm gets new chief, vowing to improve business operations, revenues

PHNOM PENH, March 18 (Xinhua) -- Newly-Appointed Director General of the state-owned Telecom Cambodia (TC) Kim Vikra vowed Monday to enhance the enterprise's governance in order to improve business operations and revenues.

"I am committed to working with all colleagues in order to lead the enterprise to progress,"he said at his official appointment ceremony."I will enhance the firm's governance through improving accountability, transparency and high responsibilities."

He also vowed to strengthen service quality, competition and human resources for staff. The TC has only 39,000 fixed phone service users and about 3,500 internet service users, according to the firm's report released last week.

Its revenues come from local and international phone calls, internet service providers, Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line services (ADSL), phone connection, fiber optic cable, interconnection fees and transit fees.

Kim Vikra succeeded the firm's ex-director general Lao Sareoun, who was removed from the post on Feb. 14 after more than 300 staff staged a protest, claiming that millions of dollars had gone missing from the company's accounts and calling for Lao Saroeun to be sacked.

However, at a ceremony on Monday, Lao Sareoun was promoted as undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunication.

Speaking at the ceremony, minister of posts and telecommunication So Khun advised the TC's new chief to stick to good governance and transparency in order to bring the firm to prosperity.

TC is one of the state-owned enterprises that plan to list on the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX). However, the listing plan will be postponed indefinitely due to poor financial performance, Sarak Khan, secretary of state at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunication told the ministry's annual meeting last week.

He said the firm had subsequently lost over the last five years, saying that in 2012, the TC, which provides fixed phone and internet services, made losses of 10.2 million U.S. dollars, and in 2011 the company lost 14.4 million U.S. dollars.

According to the rule by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia, any company wants to list on the stock market, it must see a net profit in the last three years.

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