The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph company (GTT), is offering a reward of GUY$1-million for information that could led to the arrest of persons who sabotaged the company’s fiber optic cables.
Press conference
On Wednesday, during a joint press conference hosted with Minister of Public Telecommunications, Cathy Hughes, GTT’s Chief Executive Officer Justin Nedd lamented that whenever the company rolls out improved or new service, the deliberate acts surface. “Our team will not be moved. We will not be moved,” Nedd said.
Service black out
Over 20,000 customers utilizing the company’s internet, data, mobile and landline service in sections of the country faced a service black out late Wednesday following damage to the fiber optic line along the Linden/Soesdyke highway.
Nedd said his team was able to locate the problem. The situation was corrected within hours. Based on inspection, heavy duty cutting machinery was used to damage the cable lines.
Expert suspected
The CEO believes someone or some organization with knowledge of the cable system and its location would have ventured out during the night to damage the cables.
“When we look at the history over the last 10 years, with this type of sabotage, you find an incredible coincidence that such significant outages occur when we are making progress.” Furthermore, he added that the action is “a blatant destruction of the country’s communication’s infrastructure.”
In the last 12 months the telecom company has expended GUY$50 million to repair cables that have been damaged by “criminals.”
Meanwhile, Hughes expressed alarm, at the recent vandalism. “The issue is one of national security and personal security as the ministry seeks to improve on its Safe City and Community Solutions.”
She added that Close Circuit Television Cameras (CCTV) will be used to assist in intelligence led operations to apprehend the criminals.
