By Mustapha Sesay
A bill has been tabled in parliament geared towards liberalizing Sierra Leone`s international telecommunications gateway.
The move on Friday saw the document went through the first and second readings, and if pass into to law it would see the long monopolized control over the international telecommunication gate way by Sierra Leone Telecommunications Company (Sierratel) comes to an end.
The government, through the ministry of Information and Communication, was until now seen as reluctant to relinquish the power of monopoly over the international gateway which they fear will cause a huge financial loss.
But officials have cited a number of reasons for the delay, including lack of appropriate legislations to allow the change.
This bill seeks to address all the issues initially raised by the government, says deputy Justice Minister, John Arrow Bockarie.
The bill entitled: “Telecommunication Amendment Act 2015” was introduced to promote “affordability and to liberalize the gate way” , the minister said, adding that changing from monopoly to liberalization would also enhance voice quality and data trafficking, improve security and serve as defense against terrorism and drug trade. He said it would also reduce Sim Box fraud which officials say has cost the government millions of US Dollars.
Making a contribution to the bill, Chairman of Information Committee in parliament, Benneh Bangura, said Sierra Leoneans stood to benefit a lot if the bill was passed into law. He also observed that communities that are deprived in terms of coverage and high cost of services would now see those issues as things of the past and that “low cost calls billing will be enjoy by all Sierra Leoneans.” He thus urged his colleague MP to pass the bill into law “quick and fast.”
Opposition MP Paran Tarawaley noted that to liberalize meant to introduce competition within the telecommunication industries in the country which he said would better the livelihood of many Sierra Leoneans and also improve the economic situation in the country. He added that Sierra Leone was one of the most expensive destinations in terms of making international calls, and that the proposed Act would address these issues.
The opposition MP lamented that government had not benefited much from the system of monopoly which left the government-owned telecoms company Serrate in charge for ages. The reason why the monopoly system was introduced was to contribute to economic growth but the contrary has been the case, he said.
“The bill will empower the telecommunication industry and bring in much transformation into the industry.”
© Politico 12/03/15
