The Alalubosa Community and the Community Outreach for Development and Welfare Advocacy (COFDWA), Ilorin, Kwara State capital are at daggers drawn with Globacom Communications over alleged erection of telecommunications masts. 

In a petition entitled: "Indiscriminate erection of communication masts," and signed by Engineer A.T Aduragba and Prince Isong Iyangudoh chairman and secretary of the Alalubosa Layout Residents' Association respectively observed with dismay the indiscriminate erection of communication masts in the area.

The petition, which was addressed to the state town planning authority, was also copied to the state coordinator, National Environmental Standards and Regulation Agency (NESREA), Commissioner of Police and Permanent Secretary Lands Bureau.

The letter reads in part: "We have observed with dismay, the rapidity and impunity at which communication masts are being erected within this vicinity. It should be understood that residents of the layout, mostly the landlords, accepted the allocation of land and the erection of buildings with the understanding that the area is strictly residential. 

"One of these communication masts is erected right by the fence of one of our members and we are informed that there was no due approval. We want you to know that the citing of these masts is possing serious hazards and security risks to the residents, especially when strange faces come in at night to work at the sites. Equally, vehicles carrying materials have damaged our roads thus making the efforts of the residents to go and come into the community more taxing.

"In view of the above, our members are demanding the immediate dismantling of all communication masts within the vicinity."

In his petition to Globacom which was copied to NESREA and security agencies, the Executive Director, COFDWA, Comrade Taiwo Otitolaye said: "This is in respect of the communications mast you erected less than two metres to the home of Prince Isong Iyangudoh which has caused and is still causing the following cracks on the fence and veranda of the house within the first month of erection; exposing the lives of the occupants of the building and neighbourhood to permanent danger which may arise from radiation impacts; carbon dioxide (smoke) deposit in the house and high vibration level and other forms of noise from the generating set."

He added that "the mast was inflicting permanent mental and psychological torture especially to his wife and children who, before the erection of the mast, had enjoyed peaceful and serene environment and environmental pollution and climate change is also a serious issue in these circumstances."  

He said: "Our inspection of the house revealed that you did not carry out Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) before the erection of the masts. 

"We therefore demand that the mast be dismantled and relocated away from its present location to a safe environment within four (4) weeks of receiving this letter. And we also carry out joint Environmental Impact Audits (EIAs) to determine the extent of havoc your action has caused him and his family; and adequate compensation paid by your company; that Glo Communications bear the entire cost of building another house (the same type of building) in another location safe for his family.

"We are in partnership with Environmental Rights Action (ERA), Friends of the Earth, Nigeria and the Green Alliance Nigeria (GAN) in this matter. We shall proceed to a competent law court to seek redress on behalf of our client should there be no compliance by your company."

In its reply to the environmental concerns raised by the complainants, the Kwara State Coordinator of NESREA, Mr A.F Jacob said: "I wish to inform you that this office carried out several and thorough investigations on this issue after receiving complaints from Prince Isong Iyangudoh. The report and environmental concerns observed during the investigations were forwarded to our headquarters for further actions.

"A letter of stop-work was subsequently issued to the telecommunication operator (Glo) by our agency's headquarters. This order, according to findings by our routine compliance monitoring, was said to have been ignored by the company which went ahead with the installation of the mast. 

"Our last investigation to the facility revealed that the environmental concerns as observed were still not abated; the detail report has also been forwarded to our headquarters for further directives."