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By Nwakaego Alajemba
The Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), the umbrella body of more than 150 ICT companies including GSM operators have assured that 5G poses no health risk as the senate, this week in Abuja, resolved to probe the status of 5G in the country and its possible health hazards to humans.
The lawmakers mandated the Committees on Health, Communications, Science and Technology to carry out the investigation after adopting a motion sponsored by Uche Ekwunife, senator representing Anambra Central, eastern Nigeria.
“By that the resolution, the senate may have “unwittingly walked itself into a ‘conspiracy theory’ lacking scientific bases and merit,” said telecom analysts, Abimbola Awe from the UK.
Like 4G before it, the 5G technology has generated series of rumours alleging its danger to human health largely fueled by ignorance and what experts call the politics of 5G. A recent uproar over 5G as being responsible for COVID-19 was only doused after series of public enlightenment campaigns by experts including regulatory authorities but the suspicion remains particularly in religious quarters.
However, President of the ATCON, Olusola Teniola, said in Lagos to IT Edge News that the association will be working closely with the senate committees and other stakeholder including the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy as well as the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) to create an awareness window necessary and strategic to taking everyone along.
Ekwunife, while moving the motion, said the senate has a responsibility to investigate the technology in order to address concerns over the emissions from the 5G masts and the possible adverse effects on citizens’ health.
In the heat of the controversy last month, the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy. Dr Isa Pantami had issued a statement on the status of 5G in the country and that authorities were still studying the technology before approval for deployment will be given.
MTN Nigeria had trialed 5G last year but there is yet no deployment in the country.
“There is no conclusive proof, nor has it been universally established that the deployment of the 5G network is either harmful to the human body, or is anyway linked to the global pandemic of COVID-19. A lot of countries like South Korea, UK, Germany have successfully deployed and are using the 5G network,” said the legislator.
“We will be providing information to allay their fears and concerns. We will be engaging everyone on the matter,” said Teniola. His association had weeks back made a public statement on the evolution of the technology from the first to the fifth generation and why fears over non-ionized emissions from 5G masts or any other telecom mast whether of 4G or 3G pose no health risk.
5G is the next generation of mobile internet connection and offers much faster data download and upload speeds. Through greater use of the radio spectrum it will allow far more devices to access the mobile internet at the same time.
The senate committees have four weeks to present their findings.
