TNM makes fun of sponsorship saga

TNM chief commercial officer Dan Makata on Sunday made fun of the controversy that surrounded the mobile network and intergrated data services provider’s Super League sponsorship withdrawal.
Speaking during prize presentation of the 2017 Malawi Open Golf Tournament at Lilongwe Golf Club (LGC), Makata said: “To us, this is a great moment because it marks 10 years of golf sponsorship.

“We hit 10 years somewhere else and people got jittery and we were investigated, but we are in golf to stay. We want to sponsor Malawi Open until you get tired and next year, we will be here again, that I can assure you.

“I am not sure whether to say this, but we are the biggest sponsor of sports [in the country] and we are proud of it. We are with golf until we are investigated.”
TNM withdrew its Super League sponsorship last month after the Competition and Fair Trade Commission (CFTC) launched an investigations into their agreement with the Super League of Malawi (Sulom).
In its ruling, CFTC stated that the sponsorship agreement which TNM had with Sulom had unfair trade practice clauses.

Part of the statement of sponsorship withdrawal which was signed by chief executive officer Douglas Stevenson, TNM stated that: “Following the meeting on Monday, March 20th, where Sulom and FAM was to get clarity on the ruling by CFTC on the future of the contract with TNM, CFTC had broadly maintained its ruling and, therefore, TNM has made a decision to fully withdraw from the sponsorship.”
However, TNM rescinded its decision yesterday following government’s intervention.