Lonestar Cell Subscribers Suffer Network Problem

Residents of Camp Freeman Town adjacent villages and towns in Grand Cape Mount County have frowned at the Lonestar Cell MTN Communication Corporation for not extending its network coverage to their areas.

The residents said though other GSM companies operating in the country don’t also have signals there, they are particularly concerned about the Lonestar Cell GSM Company because according to them, 90 percent of the citizens in the affected areas with mobile phones are Lonestar Cell subscribers. The residents explained that they are completely out of coverage area and, as a result, they don’t receive Lonestar’s signal in their towns.

Speaking at program marking the formal turning over of a six classroom school building by the Elephant Falls Mining Company in the county, the residents told the New Dawn that they usually travel about two hours away from the town to an area called Mafia Pai in order to receive Lonestar Cell signal before they can make calls to relatives and friends in Monrovia.

More than five towns and villages are said to be suffering from the lack of network coverage. Some of the affected towns include Fula Camp, Varney Camp, Camp Israel, Kpelle Village and Mafia Pai, amongst others. Our reporter, who visited the areas, said more young people in the areas were seen with cell phones and Lonestar Cell SIMs, walking around with music blaring from their phones.

The town people said their phones are only being used to play music from media files and to record numbers.  “we are really suffering here; it is like we are in a different world. We cannot get Lonestar Cell signal here; in fact, not Lonestar Cell alone, but other GSM companies do not have signals here too. Are we outcast? We want to talk to our relatives and friends, but no way because no network on our phones,” Varney Duma, a town chief.

Camp Freeman and its surrounding towns and villages take about five hours drive from Monrovia and it is a mining area. Most people from Monrovia go there to work for mining companies. Francis Kamara said he took assignment there and Francis Kamara said he left his family in Monrovia and took assignment there to work for a mining company.

Francis noted that since seven months ago, he has not got in touch with his family. “I know that my wife and kids are worried about me. I never really knew that here don’t have signal, and all of my family use Lonestar Cell, so the company should really try to solve our problem here; we need to call too,” he emphasized.

The residents said they listen to radio discussions regularly and want to participate on talkshows, but are unable due to the communication problem. Meanwhile, Lonestar Cell MTN has promised to look into the citizens’ concern.

Lonestar Cell MTN Chief Communication Consultant Dr. Laurence Bropleh, said the company loves all Liberians no matter where they come from or in which part of Liberia they reside. Bropleh promised to take the issue up with the appropriate authorities of the company to finding a remedy for the subscribers.