By Gift Samuel, The Sight News
Abuja-The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has denied a recent report that quoted the commission to the effect that mobile phones causes cancer.
The Commission stated unequivocally that it never issued any statement or made any presentation to that effect as there is no scientific basis to make such declaration.
The statement was attributed to the Commission’s representative at a stakeholder forum last week in Fayose Market at the GSM village in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State, on type approval processes, with a focus on mobile devices.
According to a release made available to The Sight News on Tuesday, it was disclosed that; “At the event, the Commission’s representative told the participants to ensure that the devices they sell and use are type approved – certified by the NCC in compliance with the regulations and guidelines of the Commission”.
Furthermore, the Commissiono restated its commitment not only to the protection of consumer rights but also to consumers’ education that help all stakeholders to take informed decisions, adding that many studies have been conducted on the effect of non-ionizing radiation and “there is no conclusive evidence that non-ionizing radiation increases the risk of cancer”.
NCC further urged the general public to visit: www.icnirp.org; www.cancer.co.uk; www.emf-portal.org where studies, writings and other scholarly works related to this matter have been published.
According to the World Health Organization, WHO:“A large number of studies have been performed over the last two decades to assess whether mobile phones pose a potential health risk. To date, no adverse health effects have been established as being caused by mobile phone use” www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs193/en (Accessed September 5, 2017).
The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) also states: “Acute and long-term effects of HF exposure from the use of mobile phones have been studied extensively without showing any conclusive evidence of adverse health effects.” http://www.icnirp.org/en/applications/mobile-phones/index.html (Accessed September 5, 2017).
The NCC however noted that there is a parameter called Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) which has a threshold below which it is safe to use a phone, and all phones approved by the Commission have SAR below the threshold mark which make those phones safe for use.
Photo: Consumer Voice
