Radio Biafra: Ericsson audits mast sites

Ericsson Nigeria on Monday said that it had audited all mast sites in Enugu and Port Harcourt regions, and conducted FM scanning, in order to avoid illegal transmitter installation for unlicensed radio stations.

In a statement made available to our correspondent, the company said it

took the decision to audit the mast sites after one of its contracted engineers illegally installed transmitters on masts in Enugu and Anambra states for Radio Biafra.

The statement was signed by the Managing Director, Ericsson Nigeria, Johan Jemdahl.

It read in parts, “Ericsson views this incident in an extremely serious light. It is the result of a violation of its process, which permitted access to its mast sites.

“As a result, Ericsson has initiated immediate action to foil any similar attempts. All mast sites in Enugu and Port Harcourt regions have been audited, while FM scanning was conducted.”

The statement noted that in auditing the mast sites, Ericsson Nigeria gave critical attention to all high masts and sites located in mountainous areas, i.e. locations attractive to illegal activities.

“In addition, the Site Access Process will be reviewed for all employees and third parties. We sincerely regret the unfortunate incident, which violates our Code of Business Ethics and Code of Conduct, contracted responsibilities as well as our company values,” it stated.

The statement added, “Illegal FM transmitting equipment was discovered connected to an outsourced MTN mast, managed by Ericsson, in Enugu in eastern Nigeria. The equipment was immediately confiscated and the authorities were notified.

“A contractor to Ericsson has subsequently been taken into police custody after his involvement was discovered. He has been discharged from his contracted responsibilities with Ericsson.”