EPILEPTIC INTERNET SERVICE…
CITIZENS BLAST INCOMPETENT ZOODLABS
By Ibrahim Alusine Kamara (Kamalo)
Sierra Leone and its citizens continue to suffer as a result of the self-centeredness of those in authority, who prioritize their pockets over the general good.
The country continues to lag behind in almost every aspect of development because leaders entrusted with responsibility of manning the affairs of the state are being blinded by their quest for self –enrichment, resulting in bad decisions that continue to haunt the ordinary man.
One of such selfish and bad decisions is the Zoodlabs agreement, the company controlling the International Gateway.
In April, 2022, the Sierra Leone Parliament ratified the agreement between the Ministry of Information and Communications and Zoodlabs SL (ltd) for the management of the Cable Landing Station, a critical infrastructure component for the nation’s connectivity.
As part of the agreement, the company promised to among others, invest over twenty million United States Dollars to replace what it referred to as ‘’outdated’’ equipment at the landing station in Aberdeen.
Sadly, however, internet service across the country continues to deteriorate with persistent disruptions and outages since ZoodLabs’ took over from SALCAB in December, 2020, raising serious concerns about their capacity to manage such essential services.
All the promises the company made during it takeover still remain pipe promises as the country continues to experience terrible internet services despite all the monies it continues to make from the MNOs and ISPs.
Even more disgusting is the fact that the government only receives a meagre sum of $ 450,000 from Zoodlabs annually, while the company makes close to a million dollars every month.
This therefore, lends credence to the objection from the Ministry of Finance when the Zoodlabs Agreement was initiated as it only benefits the company and few greedy and selfish individuals within the corridors of power.
‘’This is a clear case of using our oil to fry us with’’, concerned citizens bemoaned adding that there is urgent need for authorities to investigate and revisit this agreement as the company continues to show stark incompetence to manage the gateway.
Investigation continues…