Directors on the board of state-owned telco TOT may decide to dismiss president Varut Suvakorn, saying they are disappointed with his performance, according to The Bangkok Post citing sources at the Thai company.
Their main criticisms concern his…
Directors on the board of state-owned telco TOT may decide to dismiss president Varut Suvakorn, saying they are disappointed with his performance, according to The Bangkok Post citing sources at the Thai company.
Their main criticisms concern his handling of the country’s 3G network rollout and the bidding process, as well as slow progress on TOT’s business turnaround plan.
The company’s board comprises 12 directors mainly appointed by the Finance and ICT ministry, explained the newspaper. The ICT minister was reportedly looking to open to the bidding process to most companies, while Varut said that only listed companies on the country’s stock exchange should be qualified for it. The process, which is currently on hold due to several regulatory issues, was in the end open to foreign companies via joint ventures.
In the event that Varut’s contract is terminated, a board director would be appointed as acting president.
This report comes just a few days after TOT’s chairman said he would resign if the company’s Bt19bn (US$633m) bid for its 3G network expansion project fails to get approval, according to the Bangkok Post.
Areepong Bhoocha-oom reportedly said he hoped that bidding documents could be sold by next week, the bid called by the end of the month and the contract signed in February. If that schedule was not met, he is reported to have said that he would review his position.
