Senate hearing on internet suffers from spotty WiFi

The online hearing of the Senate committee on public services on the state of internet connectivity in the country was marred by wonky connection that reflected the challenges facing the nation to rapidly improve its information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure.

Sen. Grace Poe, who chairs the committee, was forced to suspend the hearing yesterday after over an hour that she and resource persons from the telecommunications companies, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and other stakeholders in the ICT had to repeat themselves as their connection in the video conference repeatedly dropped or weakened.

NTC Commissioner Edgardo Cabarios also had difficulty trying to make himself heard during the hearing.

“It is quite ironic that we are having connectivity issues during a hearing on connectivity. It is just telling us of the situation in our country today and how we are trying to cope with this new requirement that we all need to have fulfilled,” Poe said.

She described the connection as “awful to say the least.”