Revocation of licence and acquisition of equipment, etc

(1) Where the licence granted to a public utility provider is revoked by the Public Utilities Commission, or where a licensee ceases operations or loses control of operations, or where the Minister considers that control over telecommunications should be acquired for a public purpose, the Minister may, with the approval of the Minister of Finance, by Order published in the Gazette acquire for and on behalf of the Government, all such property as he may, from time to time, consider necessary to take possession of and to assume control over (2) As from the date of commencement of the Order made pursuant to sub-section (1), the property to which it relates shall vest absolutely in the Government free of all encumbrances without any further assurance, and the Registrar General, the Registrar of Lands, the Registrar of Companies and all other relevant authorities shall take due notice thereof and shall make such annotations on the records as may be necessary and issue all such certificates or documents as may be required to perfect the title of the Government to all such property. (3) Subject to section 68, in every case where the Minister makes an Order under sub-section (1), there shall be paid to the owner of the property that has been acquired by virtue of the said Order, reasonable compensation in accordance with the provisions of this Act within such time as the Supreme Court considered reasonable in all the circumstances. (4) Any person claiming an interest in or right over the acquired property shall have a right of access to the courts for the purpose of– (a) establishing his interest or right (if any); (b) determining whether that taking of possession or acquisition was duly carried out for a public purpose in accordance with this Act; 55 (c) determining the amount of the compensation to which he may be entitled; and (d) enforcing his right to any such compensation. (5) Where a licence has been revoked by the Public Utilities Commission, the power vested in the Minister under sub-section (1) may be exercised notwithstanding that such revocation is the subject of any appeal or review proceedings. (6) An Order made under sub-section (1) may contain such ancillary and consequential directions as may be necessary to give full effect to the Order, including the appointment of an interim Board of Directors of a public utility provider and of its subsidiaries. (7) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Interpretation Act, an Order made under sub-section (1) may provide that any contravention or breach thereof shall be punishable on summary conviction by a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars for each day the offence continues, or by a term of imprisonment not exceeding two years, or by both such fine and term of imprisonment. (8) Every Order made by the Minister under this section shall be subject to negative resolution. (9) In this section“property” includes shares, stock, interests of all kinds, including a mortgagee’s or chargee’s interest in property, telecommunications equipment, installations, service, apparatus or station, assets, cash and cash equivalents, rights, files, documentation, customer database, and all other property of whatever description, tangible or intangible, corporeal or incorporeal, including property held by the subsidiaries, affiliates or associates of a licensee; 56 “licensee” includes, where a licence has been revoked by the Public Utilities Commission, a person or entity, corporate or unincorporated, who held a licence immediately before such (10) The power of the Minister to make an Order under this section shall be exercised by statutory instrument with legislative effect. (11) The Minister may make an Order, under this section, with retrospective effect. (12) It shall not be necessary for the Minister to give the interested person(s) whose property is intended to be acquired an opportunity to be heard before making an Order under this section. (13) The Minister may make successive Orders under this section as he may consider necessary and the foregoing provisions of this section shall apply to every such Order.