Johannesburg - Sipho Maseko, chief executive officer of Telkom, has completed a corporate governance course after Africa’s biggest fixed-line operator was found in breach of South Africa’s Companies Act.
Maseko attended the program during the past two weeks, Telkom chief marketing officer Enzo Scarcella said by phone today.
Maseko, who was facing a penalty of as much as 1 million rand and referral to the National Prosecuting Authority if he hadn’t sat the course, is the first South African chief executive to receive a notice of this type.
Maseko was told by the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission in February to attend a director duties course after a 6 million-rand interest-free loan awarded to chief financial officer Jacques Schindehutte was judged to have breached corporate rules.
Telkom had rejected the CIPC’s authority to impose sanctions, Johannesburg-based Business Day newspaper reported on April 10, citing an interview with Maseko.
The CIPC didn’t immediately respond to phone calls and e-mails seeking comment.
Telkom, which is almost 40 percent owned by the South African government, reiterated today full-year earnings would be more than 20 percent higher than a year ago.
The shares gained as much as 8.1 percent, the biggest intraday climb since August, and traded 6.2 percent higher at 38.67 rand as of 4:14 p.m. in Johannesburg. - Bloomberg News