"NTC, TEXT SPAMS NO MORE IN THE PHILIPPINES"

SENATE PRESIDENT JUAN PONCE ENRILE

Finally!?!! The NTC- National Telecommunications Commission have issued two measures to protect “kuno” the interests of mobile subsrcibers here in the Philippines that would take effect this month. Complaints of the rampant “vanishing pre-paid loads” began to gain momentum when Senate President JUAN PONCE ENRILE , now “a hero to the PINOY TEXTER“,delivered a privilege speech on the senate floor claiming to be a victim of “vanishing pre-paid loads”. Well this vanished loads is no longer news to ordinary subsrcibers like me who just can’t help but yell,”Alanghiya, ka-kaload ko lang ng Php30 wala na agad.” My personal experience is just one to be added to the statistics as one of the hapless victims to this brouhaha since ordinary folks would simply disregard it in disgust and don’t have to spend time to call or report this problem to the proper authorities. Mag-load nalang ulit, kailangan eh! In fairness to the cellphone service providers, I have reported once and complained to the customer service regarding “vanished loads”. The amount of credits that I have complained were credited back to my account in just a few hours only to find out it was all gone again in minutes. Frustration and helplessness of course followed so I’ve decided to change SIM-Subcriber Identification Module hoping to remedy the problem. Just a few weeks of honest to goodness usage of credits and the chronic problem of vanished loads is back with a vengeance. The question here is: How about the silent majority who just opted to buy another “tingi-tingi load” in the sari-sari store and didn’t bother anymore to complain? A dealer of Smart affirmed the truthfulness of the charges of vanishing loads. Robert Galon, president of a group of distributors of telco products and services, said that telcos “trick unsuspecting cell phone users to enroll in the value-added services.”

“Once the clueless subscriber is enrolled, telco daily-deducts load without [the subscriber’s] due knowledge,” he added. “It is common knowledge that once it starts, it is very difficult for the ordinary Filipino to stop these promos [promotions] from eating up his load.”

Actually this new NTC circulars has long been overdue and is a big sigh of relief to millions of cellphone subscribers nationwide. One is a circular tripling the shelf life of phone cards set to take effect on July 19. This “vanishing loads ” brouhaha has prompted a Senate Investigation spearheaded by the Senate Committe on Trade in tandem with the Senate Committee on Public Services . In the course of the hearing, telcos got threats of franchise review from senators and NTC officials at some point got dressing-down from senators for not doing their job in regulating the telcos. Buti nalang mga ‘tol election next year kaya pinag-abalahan ng mga magigiting nating mga SENADOR ang isyung ito sa pangunguna ng isa sa mga leading presidentiables in 2010 na si Sen. MAR ROXAS at Sen. RAMON BONG REVILLA, JR. So, before we congaratulate our senators for a job well-done, let’s just wait and see first if this NTC measures ay may “PANGIL” ba talaga ‘ika nga as SMART COMMUNICATIONS, GLOBE TELECOM, and DIGITEL MOBILE PHILS could still file a motion for reconsideration. The irony of it all, with the tough words used in the circular,violators would have to pay a measly amont of PhP200 for every day of violation as it is the maximum penalty under existing laws. A bill is still pending at the House of Representatives that would have jacked up the fines to PhP10,000 to Php10Million. And what can we expect from our honorable congressmen nowadays? Priority BILL? No way! They have their CON-ASS!!!!

WHAT OUR SENATORS HAVE SAID:

“Seven ring tones ako? Talaga? [I got seven ring tones? Really?] They are robbing my pocket,”.“How can it be that I’m enrolled [to a ring tone subscription] when I have not signed anything?” …Senate President JUAN PONCE ENRILE said during the hearing.

“What you really don’t want is Congress writing your operations manual. Because if you’re not responsive to the needs of the public we will come in and write your operations manual.” —-SENATOR MAR ROXAS,Chairman of the Senate Trade Committe said point blank to officers of telcos during the senate hearing.

“One thing is for sure, the telcos may have unlimited power right now but they are not untouchable,”— Sen. Ramon BONG Revilla said in a statement after the hearing.

[PHOTO CREDITS FROM http://www.flickr.com/photos/roger_alcantara/101934982/]

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