Bengoh folk rue lack of telecommunication connectivity
KUCHING: Telecommunication companies have to carry out feasibility studies before putting up their receptive antennae or discs in certain places.
Assistant Minister of Transportation Datuk Dr Jerip Susil said every telecommunication company should make sure that it would have the economy of scale before investing in a certain area.
He said in Sarawak, once the company had installed its receptive disc at the tower, it would have to pay rent to the owner and operator of the tower.
In the case of Sarawak, the rental is paid to Sacofa – a private company that holds exclusive rights to build, own and operate all telecommunication towers in Sarawak.
“Because they (telecommunication companies) have to pay the rental, they would have to see if it is profitable or not to install their receptive discs at the towers,” said Dr Jerip, who is Mambong assemblyman, when told of the plight of the villagers in Bengoh Resettlement Scheme ( BRS) and in the surrounding areas.
He said Sacofa had constructed a tower at the site about 3km from BRS, somewhere near the boundary of Padawan Municipal Council ( MPP) and Bau District Council ( BDC).
The tower, he said, is already there but there is still no service yet because the receptive discs or antennae are not there.
“This tower is to cater for
Because they (telecommunication companies) have to pay the rental, they would have to see if it is profitable or not to install their receptive discs at the towers.
telecommunication coverage in areas within the MPP and BDC ( jurisdictions), which include the BRS, Kampung Skio and probably Kampung Sogoh.
“May be the economy of scale is not there yet, which is why it is not operational.
“I think we should give the telecommunication companies time to do their economics calculation,” he said.
Difficulties in accessing telecommunication network have forced the Bidayuh villagers in BRS to drive or ride to a specific location at Kampung Semadang in order to obtain signal on their mobile phones.
For some, they believe that no telecommunication connectivity and Internet access have hampered the community’s growth, especially having access to social media platforms or to know more about the outside world through the worldwide web.
According to the villagers in BRS, they have requested for telecommunication towers to be built at their resettlement, as promised before they moved out from their previous houses, but nothing much has been done.
A middle-aged farmer has said that most of the youths have ‘WhatsApp’ on their phones, but seldom use the application as there is no connectivity.
According to him, they cannot read online news or get the latest information unless they go to Kampung Semadang, which is about 5km away, or beyond.
BRS, which is in Mambong constituency, is a new resettlement created for the villagers from Kampung Semban, Kampung Rejoi, Kampung Pain Bojong and Kampung Taba Sait, who were relocated from their ancestral land to give way to the construction of Bengoh Reservoir Dam.
Datuk Dr Jerip Susil, Assistant Minister of Transportation