Cell mast allegations slammed

OPEN AIR School principal has slammed false reports that a cell mast is being erected on the school’s hostel property in Princess Alice Avenue, Glenwood.

Noel Moodley said he was saddened that an esteemed organisation like Open Air School had been on the receiving end of defamatory comments and false reports following a post on the Anti-Cell Mast Alliance Facebook group last week.

The post showed the Open Air School hostel sign, along with a photo of what is actually an existing cell mast on the property. A comment on the post indicated that a resident had taken the images of the cell mast which was ‘quietly being erected’ on the property. The post elicited angry response from other people who posted comments that this was a special needs school and that there was a proven link between the exacerbation of autism by EMF radiation. People also questioned what the school was thinking and why no-one had been consulted on the decision to erect the mast.

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Moodley said allegations based on such an untruth needed to be corrected, adding that it would have been simpler and more ethical to contact the school before posting such assumptions on social media.

“The cellphone mast was installed almost 20 years ago on the boarding establishment grounds by the previous leadership. It was not quietly done last week as is alleged. When I became principal a few years ago, the school governing body and I queried this and I agreed that once the agreement that was in place by the parties concerned expired, the mast would be removed. We appreciate the issues raised by these concerned citizens, but if the ones making such allegations had approached the school directly to query this they could have received factual information,” he said.

Moodley said as the mast, which is a disguised tree, is under 25m in height, consultation was not necessary in the first place.

“What has been done to our school name is unacceptable. It’s also worrying that individuals possibly entered our premises to gain pictures. It’s a tragedy that our marginalised special needs community gets further attacked based on an individual or group tarnishing the name of our school. The mast is also not on our school premises as stated in the post. What the individual saw and pictures show is actually routine maintenance being done on the mast,” he said.

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