MTN outlines serious issues confronting their operations in Ashanti Region
Charles Osei Akoto, a Regional Technical Head and Senior Manager at the MTN, Ashanti, has revealed that fibre optic cable cuts and site access denial by landlords, still remained the major challenges that confront their operations.
According to him, it was very unfortunate that these aforementioned issues were confronting their operations as it keeps disrupting their network deliveries.
Detailing the records, he said, 471 cuts have been experienced so far. From the beginning of the year 2024 up to July, he said, 38 of such fibre optic cable cuts have been experienced.
He said, though all necessary arrangements are made with both the community folks and the various municipal/ district assemblies, people keep cutting the telecommunication network’s fibre optic cables and this affect their excellent network delivery.
“One major challenge we are facing in our network operations is the number of unfortunate fiber cuts we experience. We have recorded 471 so far, with YTD being 38 cuts.
“Another challenge is the site access denial which is mostly done by some landlords. All these impede our good intentions to deliver networks, smoothly “. He said.
When asked if all necessary arrangements are made with stakeholders before the fibers are laid, he said, “we can’t go to an area to lay a fibre without informing or making all the necessary arrangements to create the awareness of the assembly and the community folks.
We make all these arrangements but people still dig the grounds to affect our laid fiber”. He said.
He revealed that, most of these cases occur during road constructions and other construction related works.
Apart from planting the cables in the ground, he said, there was an aerial option where they used to project them in the sky. But, he said, the telecommunication network still faced similar interruption challenges just as what is happening to those planted in the grounds.
“At some point, we opted for the aerial method of networking our fibre optic cables but we faced similar challenges. People were cutting them just as we experience when it is planted in the ground. Some do it with intentions whiles others do it unintentional. Big vehicles sometimes interrupt them”. He said.
He has however appealed to Ghanaians to show concern and help protect these cables that provide network services.
He has also called on journalists and other stakeholders to help educate the general public on the need to protect their fibre optic cables to ensure smooth network delivery.
Mr. Osei Akoto disclosed this is an interview with the media during the 2024 edition of MTN/ Media Editors forum held at the Lancaster Hotel in Kumasi.
Story by: Nana Peprah(AsiaseTV)
