Senator Grace Poe criticized the plan to limit to two the number of independent and private companies that could be allowed to build cellular towers in the country.
“In the case of cell towers, someone suggested to the president or the DICT [Department of Information and Communication Technology] that there should be only one or two companies that can build cell towers. That is stupid,” Poe said during the hearing of the Senate committee on public service.
“Whoever can build cell towers should be allowed to, as long as it follows regulation. There should be no monopoly. The more cell towers there are, the better our [telecom] signal will be,” Poe said.
Presidential adviser on information and communications technology Ramon Jacinto allegedly suggested to President Rodrigo Duterte a policy that will mandate two independent tower companies registered with the National Telecommunications Commission to build and share their towers for use of the existing telcos and the prospective new major player in the industry within the first four years of its implementation.
Globe Telecom Inc. and Smart Communications Inc. claimed the proposal of Jacinto would violate their congressional franchise.
The Department of Information and Communications Technology expressed confidence that the third telecommunications player would be operational next year, if the bureaucratic glitches could be resolved immediately.
“If anything goes as planned, we will have a bidding on Nov. 7. Let us give the third telco six months or so to roll out its infrastructure. By middle part of next year, they can start getting subscribers,” DICT acting Secretary Eliseo Rio Jr. told Poe, chairman of the committee, when asked about the target date for the third telco’s operation.
Senator Francis Escudero expressed concern over the issue of using a common tower managed by the government because this might create a monopoly or oligopoly in the internet service.
The DICT said that while the new telco player would have a “provisional status” this November, a strict selection process should be established to assure transparency.
The third telco will be selected via algorithm of a special computer program by the DICT. Poe said that the DICT officials assured her of an objective selection process that would rely on computer algorithm to weigh the qualifications of the candidate companies and determine which is most qualified.
Poe said while it is the first time that a selection process would be dependent on a computer program, no one could bribe a computer as long as there are observers from the government and other stakeholders.
She said that checks and balances were installed in the process and went through the guidance of the oversight committee on who will be allowed to submit their bids.
Poe said that before the third telco could become operational, it should undergo the scrutiny of the Congress who will issue the franchise.