GSM companies in trouble – Liberia news The New Dawn Liberia, premier resource for latest news

The House of Representatives Committee on Posts and Telecommunications has instructed two GSM companies here to restitute unused credits of customers’ in the Southeast of Liberia

By Bridgett Milton

Thursday, March 7, 2024: Following a probe into why Companies recently provided deteriorating services to southeast Liberia, the House Committee on Posts and Telecommunications has instructed the two GSM companies to restitute customers’ unused credits in that part of the country.

The committee’s mandate is one of several recommendations proffered to the House of Representatives plenary on Thursday, 7 March, after the body received full insight into the challenges that led to the deterioration of services in LoneStar MTN’s networks.

On February 15, 2024, during the 11th day of the House sitting, River Gee County District #3 Representative Johnson N. Williams complained to the House through a communication about LoneStar MTN’s poor services.

He alleged that for two months, the GSM provider’s services, including voice calls, SMS, and internet, were unstable for most of the day and that the company failed to provide information or notifications to thousands of subscribers.

However, during Thursday’s session, the House’s Committee on Posts and Telecommunications recommended to the Plenary that a comprehensive report on customer restitution be presented to it after compliance.

Committee Chair Representative Ivar K. Jones of Margibi County District #2 said that on February 21, 2024, the body conducted a hearing with LoneStar MTN and Orange Liberia, in keeping with the mandate of the Plenary to inquire about the quality of services being provided as it relates to the communication from Representative Johnson S.N. Williams of District No. 3, River Gee County.

He said the Committee on Posts and Telecommunications invited LoneStar MTN and Orange Liberia to a hearing on February 21, 2024, in the Speaker’s Conference Room at 2:00 p.m. The committee also visited the Head Offices of LoneStar MTN and Orange Liberia on February 23, 2024, to learn about the methodology the companies have deployed to monitor their networks across the country.

During the hearing with the two GSM Companies, he said the entities acknowledged the complaint against them and stated that they had some issues with their equipment being used to provide service to southeast Liberia.

According to Jones, the GSM companies informed the committee that their signals were disturbed by interferences, but they are exerting all efforts to address the problem in the southeast.

According to him, the two companies lamented that bad road condition is their greatest challenge in getting equipment to southeast Liberia. Editing by Jonathan Browne