Published: October 26, 2026
MONROVIA – Orange Liberia and LonestarCell MTN could face a Senate investigation into how they bill subscribers. Sinoe County Sen. Augustine S. Chea accused the two companies Thursday of charging customers for calls that drop or never connect, and he called the practice “theft.”
By Blamo N. Toe
Speaking in plenary, Chea asked his colleagues to direct the Senate Committee on Posts and Telecommunications to investigate the operators’ billing practices, network performance and investment in infrastructure.
“That is a form of theft; a form of theft,” Chea said. “These companies are taking people’s money without providing the services they are paying for.”
Chea, who chairs the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, Claims and Petitions, said subscribers are losing airtime before their calls connect. “You make a call, and by the time the telephone starts ringing, your credit is already being deducted,” he said.
He said dropped calls and failed connections have become common across the country. “These days, when you make a telephone call, either the call does not go through, or if it goes through, within a short time, it starts breaking up. Before you know it, the call drops completely,” he said. “Network problems are everywhere in this country. Everywhere! Why should it be like that?”
Chea said the companies have grown without upgrading their networks. “But there are no improvements,” he said. “They are making more money. They have more customers, but they continue using the same facilities. That is something we need to look into.”
He also questioned whether subscribers get full value for mobile data they buy when connections are poor.
Chea did not present technical assessments, billing records or financial data to support his claims. Whether customers are being charged for failed connections cannot be determined without an examination of the companies’ billing systems.
He said visitors who recently came from the United States for a funeral had complained about the networks. “I recently had some people who came from the United States to attend a funeral. Some of them complained bitterly about the mobile network services in Liberia,” he said.
Chea said the committee should call in the management of both companies to explain the network failures, how they bill customers, and what they are investing to improve service and capacity.
“So, please, colleagues, let us call on the Senate Committee on Posts and Telecommunications to look into this matter,” he said. “We need to know why these companies continue to experience such serious network difficulties despite having more customers and generating more revenue. We must ensure that the necessary improvements are made so that Liberians can receive reliable communication services.”
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