Palace to ask NTC if Globe, Smart improved services ahead of December deadline
Dec 1, 2020 2:38:25 PM
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 1) — Malacañang will be counting on the assessment of the National Telecommunications Commission to see if local providers Smart and Globe upgraded network services as President Rodrigo Duterte’s December deadline looms.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said Tuesday that his office has been trying to get in touch with NTC Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba for feedback.
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“Kinakailangan po natin ng kasagutan dito dahil ang NTC ang regulatory agency ng ating mga telcos, para malaman natin kung nagkaroon na nga ng improvement [We really need answers from the NTC as the regulatory agency for our telcos, so that we will know if there have been improvements],” Roque said during his regular briefing.
Duterte ranted against Smart Communications and Globe Telecom during his fifth State of the Nation Address in July, threatening to take over their operations if there are no improvements by year-end.
Filipinos have become more reliant on mobile data services during the COVID-19 pandemic as they are forced to work or study from home.
This is not the first time the President warned telcos to step up. After winning the 2016 presidential elections, Duterte warned the companies that if they do not provide faster internet connection, foreign investors will be allowed to do the job.
This is also similar to threats to take over the services of water concessionaires Maynilad and Manila Water due to supposedly unfair contracts, which has not happened to this day.
Roque stressed the urgency of better mobile connections and added the urgency of getting Dito Telecommunity, the country’s third player, to come on board. The new service provider owned by billionaire businessman and Duterte campaign funder Dennis Uy is scheduled for commercial rollout in March 2021.
“Sa ngayon po, ang personal experience ko, wala pa rin pong pagbabago [As of now, based on my personal experience, there has been no progress],” the Palace official said, lamenting that his mobile phone is useless for voice calls.
Roque said the private firms have no more excuse for lousy services after the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act required local government units to fast-track the approval of permits to build cell sites nationwide – an issue raised by Globe president and chief executive officer Ernest Cu to Duterte and the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases back in August.
On Monday night, Interior Secretary Eduardo Año reported that 2,220 permits for the construction of cell towers have been approved while 712 remain pending.
Roque gave the telco firms the benefit of the doubt, saying it could only be a matter of time to put up these cell sites. He asked both networks to submit reports on how many they are bound to install.
Both providers have said they are ramping up 5G network services in the country. Globe is eyeing at least 800 new towers between October-December alone, while Smart earlier said it is putting up 2,000 new cell sites in 2021.
SOURCE: https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2020/12/1/Duterte-NTC-Globe-Smart-service-improvement-December-2020.html
