266 TELCO TOWERS STILL NOT OPERATIONAL, EXCEEDING NINE-MONTH TARGET DEADLINE - FAHMI

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28 (Bernama) -- A total of 266 out of 577 telecommunication (telco) towers under Phase 1 of the National Digital Network (JENDELA) initiative have yet to be operational, exceeding the nine-month target deadline, the Dewan Rakyat was told.

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said that among the companies involved is YTL Communications Sdn Bhd, which has failed to complete the 51 telco tower projects awarded to them under JENDELA.

“YTL (performance) is the worst, I apologise for having to mention this, but out of the 51 telco tower projects they received, none of them were completed,” he said in reply to Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (PN-Kuala Kangsar) during Question Time.

Iskandar Dzulkarnain wanted to know the status of the implementation of the telco tower projects under JENDELA and the extent of the actions taken against contractors who failed to complete the projects within the stipulated timeframe. 

Other than YTL, Fahmi said other companies awarded the telco tower projects were CelcomDigi with 866 towers, of which 366 are still in progress; Maxis (134 towers, 96 under construction); UMobile (143 towers, 19 under construction); and REDTone (191 towers, 45 under construction).

Fahmi said that contractors would face stern action if the towers were delayed in completion.

He said that penalties that could be imposed under the Notice of Designation to tower builders for failing to complete the towers within the specified time include liquidated damages, forfeiture of the Performance Bond, rejection of claims, and legal action under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.

As of Oct 31 this year, Fahmi said 1,385 out of 1,661 towers had been completed, but only 808 towers were operational.

The minister said that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has been instructed to monitor any telco towers facing delays in completion.

“At present, the action being considered is to impose liquidated damages on the parties involved.

“MCMC is currently gathering information and evidence of non-compliance to enable action to be taken against contractors who have failed to complete the towers within the specified timeframe,” he said.

Meanwhile, to address the issue of internet access in urban and rural areas, Fahmi said that the government, through MCMC, has set a target to provide 100 per cent internet coverage in populated areas by 2025 under the JENDELA initiative.

He said the government, through MCMC, will also provide infrastructure and basic communication services via the Universal Service Provision (USP) Fund for rural and remote areas.

Under JENDELA, Fahmi said 8.88 million premises now have access to fibre optic connectivity, while the median mobile broadband speed is 105.75 Mbps, and broadband coverage in populated areas has reached 98.38 per cent as of Oct 31 this year.

-- BERNAMA