Centertel boss Jozefiak appointed to top job at TPSA

Marek Jozefiak, head of PTK Centertel, yesterday replaced Pawel Rzepka as chief executive of TPSA. According to the Rzeczpospolita daily Rzepka, who has been at the helm of TPSA since 1997, resigned for personal reasons. Jozefiak will serve as the head of the two companies concurrently. Changes to the TPSA management had been widely anticipated ever since a France Telecom-Kulczyk Holding consortium increased its stake in the telecommunications giant to 47.5% after buying an additional 12.5% of shares from the State Treasury on October 16. TPSA is the owner of 66% of Centertel, while France Telecom holds the remainder of shares. Market analysts believe that Jozefiak's appointment will have a positive impact on the market, in view of his established contacts with France Telecom. In the wake of Rzepka's replacement, the TPSA management yesterday dismissed chief financial officer Donald Chodak and another member of the supervisory board, Marian Ogonowski. According to Wlodzimierz Giller, an analyst with Erste Securities Polska, among the key tasks the new CEO must deal with are the company's over-staffing, and declining subscriber numbers. (Prawo i Gospodarka, pp. 1, 10; Rzeczpospolita, p. B3; Reuters) M.T.K.