An Official of the Nigerian Communications Commission has said telecom equipment brought into the country were tested to ensure that they were hazards-free.
Maryam Bayi, the Director of Consumer Affairs of the NCC, told the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja that any telecom equipment brought into the country had been screened to meet international standards.
Bayi said the equipment were brought to be used for best practices and not to cause health damages or threats to the society.
According to her, the commission has embarked on sensitisation programme across the country to dismiss rumours that telecom masts and towers are the major cause of cancer.
She said: “It has become imperative to correct the misinformation being propagated that masts and towers have negative effects on human health.
“The research conducted by the World Health Organisation and other technical research institutes have not shown any risk to human life as a result of radiation emanating from telecom equipment.
“All the equipment brought into the country are tested to ensure they meet international industry standards before they can be used in the country.”
Bayi said poor network service in some cases might be based on the network service providers, adding that consumers had the right to switch to other networks in case the one they used was not satisfying them.
She said: “We advice people to switch to other networks based on the issue of poor connectivity and other dissatisfaction from the service providers.
“Mobile Number Portability is a service that enables consumers to move to other networks without losing their original numbers and we encourage consumers to change to another network if they are dissatisfied.”
The director said the commission was planning more programmes that could strengthen the growth of the sector and ensure that consumers got value for their money.
NAN.