Business News of Tuesday, 7 June 2005

Source: GNA

GT to introduce pre-paid system for homes

Tema, June 7, GNA - Ghana Telecom (GT) will introduce a pre-paid telephone system in homes by December this year as an alternative to cutting down billing complaints.

The new system would enable customers to recharge their credits on their accounts with top-up cards whereas the units will run according to the number and duration of calls, says GT's General Manager in charge of Strategy Business Development, Mr Emanuel Dziko.

Mr Dziko, who was interacting with members of the public in Tema to identify and address pertinent problems facing GT customers, said the prepaid system was expected to give customers the opportunity to control their calls.

He said domestic fixed line customers could use their top-up cards to make calls through public phone booths provided they had credits on it.

Mr Dziko said Ghana Telecom had concluded arrangements with Ecobank and Merchant Bank for its customers to pay their bills at their outlets. During the exchanges, many GT customers complained about unusual high bills and tapping of calls, among other concerns. The General Manager said the GT was aware of fraud in the system and had set up a Fraud Management Unit to detect anomalies to its operations.

Mr Dziko said GT had also introduced a "One for All" system to take care of commercial customers such as communication centre operators. Mr Selorm Fiador who is in charge of the Company's Customer Care announced that a customer's assessment questionnaire had been introduced to record customers' problems to facilitate further investigations. He however urged customers not to hesitate to report any problem to the Company's Customer Care Unit for immediate correction.

Mr Fiador gave the assurance that GT would do all it could to meet the expectations of its customers and warned that anybody found using the Company's facilities illegally would be made to face the law.