INSUFFICIENT cell sites and telecommunication infrastructure are causing slow internet connection in Cagayan de Oro City, a city councilor said.
In an inquiry with telcos last week, City Councilor George Goking said the number of cell sites in the city can no longer meet the demands of a fast-growing city like Cagayan de Oro.
"According to them, this inadequacy of telco infrastructure is one of the reasons of the slow internet speed," he said.
He said the council also learned that in 2016, a huge number of proposals to construct cell sites are pending before the local government unit.
Goking, who chairs the trade and commerce committee, said a telco has to get a total of 26 permits before the City Government allows the construction of a cellular site.
"Ang ilang sulti (They said) they wanted to have more cell sites, so we want it to make it simple soon and review the existing ordinance and see kung ma-improve ba (if it can be improved), and we have to do this fast so we are to immediately review this ordinance para matan-aw unsa ang laing kakulangon (to see if there are other inadequacies)," he added.
City Councilor Edna Dahino proposed that a resolution must be passed to review the City Ordinance 9119-2004 and possibly amend the said ordinance to shorten the process.
"I am calling for the review of our ordinance 9119-2004 for the purpose of streamlining it and impose minimal regulatory intervention," she said.
It can be recalled that Dahino raised the issue on poor internet connection, saying she is worried that this will jeopardize the Business Process Outsourcing companies and e-commerce industry.
She also pointed out that while the connection is consistently slow, telcos are charging consumers exorbitant fees.
The City Council also welcomed President Rodrigo Duterte's call to add more internet service providers in the country, particularly foreign internet providers.