Sierra Leone News: MPs lambast mobile companies

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Members of Parliament (MPs) of the Information and Communications Committee of Parliament yesterday summoned mobile operators to Committee Room 3 for alleged ineptitude to provide adequate and reliable service to the “poor users” of their respective services. The Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Binneh Bangura supported by his colleagues, emphasized that not only have the companies failed to meet the communications need of the populace, but have equally been extorting money from customers through the “weak” service they provide to the people. He said that as representatives of the people, they face the bulk of embarrassment from their constituents in particularly the provinces. Hon. Hassan Sesay claimed, referencing Airtel, that services provided by the company are being imposed on poor customers, and in the event that one wants to unsubscribe to some of these “fraudulent services” the company will make the process very difficult because, he said, the services are used to extort money from people. On the issue of the poor network, the Hon. Kelfala Conteh said that the companies, with reference to Africell, are using old and outdated machines with poor performance, impedes the output of communication services in the country. Hon. Param Tarawally buttressed that all the companies care about is how to make huge money at the expense of the masses, while they plan little on how to improve their systems for the benefit of the populace. Hon. Veronica Sesay cautioned Comium to try to address its financial discrepancies, especially when the representative of the company (Comium) assured the committee that by 31st of this month, the company would have cleared off its financial burden. Hon. Jusufu B. Mansaray, while praising Sierratel for the remarkable improvement they are making as the country’s own telecom industry, encouraged them to liberalize their systems and make it more competitive, so that Sierra Leoneans would enjoy their services. However, honorable members who spoke, hinged the blame squarely on the regulatory body; the National Telecommunication Commission (NATCOM). It was pointed that the leakages in mobile operations in the country is as a result of NATCOM’s laxity in exercising its functions as enshrined in the Telecoms Act and the International Telecommunications Unit of which the body is signatory. Members noted that had NATCOM performed its functions well, mobile companies would not have had a field day; extorting monies from poor people and providing faulty services to the people. Therefore, the Acting Director of NATCOM, Saidu Turay assured that the commission is now poised to correct some of the ills by rigorously using the powers at their disposal, in a bid to make communications as effective as possible to the people. By Poindexter Sama Thursday March 06, 2014

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