Anti-Cell C banner amended after judgement

George Prokas, owner of the anti-Cell C banner at World Wear Shopping Centre in Fairland, has amended the message on the banner after it had been vandalised.

The anti-Cell C banner now reads, “Cell C is perceived by the owner of this billboard to be the most useless cell phone provider in SA as experienced via Cell C Sandton City branch”.

This amendment comes after Judge Sharise Weiner on 13 November ruled in favour of Prokas stating that he merely expressed his fair opinion on the banner.

When the banner was initially erected it read “The most useless service provider in SA- Cell C Sandton City…”

Below this message written in Cell C branding colours was the cell phone number of Cell C’s Franchise Manager Riaan van Rooyen.

The banner in question was subsequently vandalised to read, “The most useful service provider in SA as experienced via Cell C Sandton City”.

The franchise manager Riaan van Rooyen’s cellphone number – which had been written in Cell C branding colours – was replaced with “We love Cell C”.

The banner cost Prokas over R60, 000.

Prokas put up the banner at the shopping centre situated on the Corner of Beyers Naudé Drive and Wilson Street following months of attempting to get help from Cell C’s Sandton City branch.

He sent an urgent notice to Cell C on 14 November requesting the service provider to procure the removal of his name from the records of TransUnion Credit Bureau, and to erase the “debt” of R5 754. The service provider has adhered to these demands.

The dispute arose after Prokas had taken out a contract for his son with Cell C in 2013.

The phone’s indicated number turned out to belong to and was being used by a different person who ran up a bill of over R5 000.

Prokas subsequently ended the stop-order for the phone in October last year.

However, when attempting to buy a car earlier in 2014, Prokas discovered he was listed as a bad debtor as a result of the unpaid R5 000 from Cell C.