KIEV, Nov. 2 ??“ UkrTelekom, the national phone company, is scrambling to fend off a 800 mln hryvnia back tax bill from the Kiev tax authority, Heorhiy Dzekon, the board director, told lawmakers in a testimony Wednesday.

The testimony, at Parliament??™s communications committee, was requested to check allegations made by the State Property Fund Chairwoman Valentyna Semeniuk that UkrTelekom is being artificially driven into bankruptcy by top managers.