Protection of installation or plant used by public telecommunication or public postal licensees
82.—(1) No person shall, without the written approval of a public telecommunication licensee or a public postal licensee, as the case may be —
(a)
lay or carry any mains, pipes, conduits, circuits or wires in, along, through, across, over or under any street or place in a manner which is likely to interfere with or cause damage to any installation or plant used for telecommunications or for posts;
(b)
perform any work of laying, installing, constructing or maintaining any telecommunication line or equipment used or intended for use with any equipment or telecommunication system; or
(c)
affix any placard, advertisement, notice or other thing in or on, or paint, tar or in any way disfigure any installation or plant used for telecommunications or for posts.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), any approval under subsection (1) may be granted or withheld by the licensee concerned or may be granted upon such terms and conditions as the licensee concerned thinks fit to impose.
(3) Any dispute relating to the withholding of any approval under subsection (1), or the terms and conditions attached to the granting of such approval, shall be referred to the Authority whose decision shall be final.
(4) Where the commission by any person of an offence under subsection (1) is due to the act or default of some other person, that other person shall be guilty of the offence; and a person may be charged with and convicted of the offence by virtue of this subsection whether or not proceedings are taken against the first-mentioned person.
(5) In any proceedings for an offence under subsection (1), it shall, subject to subsection (6), be a defence for the person charged to prove that he took all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid committing the offence.
(6) Where the defence provided by subsection (5) involves an allegation that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of another person, the person charged shall not, without leave of the court, be entitled to rely on that defence unless, within a period ending 7 clear days before the hearing, he has served on the prosecutor a notice in writing giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of that other person as was then in his possession.
(7) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall, in addition to the forfeiture of any equipment seized, be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000 and, in the case of a continuing offence, to a further fine not exceeding $500 for every day or part thereof during which the offence continues after conviction.