3G Consultants Go Legal Against PTA for Not Paying Fee

The consultants employed by the Asian country Telecommunications Authority (PTA) to auction the 3G mobile licenses have engaged lawyers to require action at law over the non-payment of their fees, same a joint statement issued by the consultants.

Dr. Rob Nicholls from the Australian business firm Webb Henderson; Dennis Ward, the previous spectrum auctioneer for the Canadian Spectrum Management Program; and Martin Sims from the spectrum specialists PolicyTracker; got 3 month contracts by the PTA — ranging from twenty three November 2012 – for making ready the knowledge note then the procural of 3G licenses in Asian country.

Three consultants area unit currently claiming that that they had completed over half the allotted work on their own expense – together with a drawn-out keep in Asian country – before they came to understand regarding the termination of their contracts through media.

Consultants say that PTA didn’t make sure the cancelation of their contracts till Jan 14: period later.

It perhaps recalled here that Dr. Khawar Siddique Khokhar, in a very letter written to Principal Secretary to the PM, the cupboard secretary, secretary info technology, had termed the hiring of 3 consultants for 3G auction as amerciable, in violation of medium and PPRA rules and while not the information (and approval) of authority.

Later on the problem of hiring of consultants was taken to alternative authorities and eventually the contract was terminated. However, as claimed by the consultants, no payment was created to consultants because the regulator had in agreement within the contract.

The consultants got individual cheques by the PTA for 100 percent of the in agreement fee, however on cashing these cheques discovered that the PTA had stopped them.

“This is cheque fraud, pure and straightforward, and punishable by a jail sentence beneath Pakistani law,” same authority Martin Sims.

“This is disgraceful behaviour from a public body, that ought to be maintaining AN exemplary name, not damaging Pakistan’s name reception and abroad.”

3G_Auctiondelay

The consultants claim that they need incurred substantial personal expenses and not been paid a penny for the work they need done. they assert that despite various tries to contact the PTA nobody has been willing to speak to them.

The 3 international consultants have engaged Bhutta, Khan and Mir to recover the cash. “There area unit several legal choices offered to North American country we have a tendency to|and that we} are going to be following every of those successively till the cash we area unit owed is paid,” same Rob Nicholls, one in all the consultants.

The contract cancellation letter sent by the PTA was “ridiculous”, same Dennis Ward. It claimed that the contract was void at first, a legal term that means invalid at the point in time. “That are some things solely a court will decide,” same Ward. “The PTA is wrongfully obligated to honour contracts, it can’t appoint itself decide and jury and suddenly plan to pull out.”

The forthcoming action at law means that the PTA is liable not just for the unpaid fees however conjointly for the legal prices related to the case. “The PTA is being cavalier with public cash,” same Rob Nicholls. “Instead of adopting this ‘head within the sand’ approach it ought to build a meeting to settle its debts and convey North American country back once the election to complete the auction.”