KUALA LUMPUR: Telecommunications companies have been instructed to resolve Internet access issues on a monthly, state-by-state basis, said Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil.
He said this is a follow-up measure to the 6-Way 4G Multi-Operator Core Network (MOCN) sharing agreement signed in late January this year.
“I intend to have a policy where ‘if there’s a way, there should be Internet.’ We can achieve this because the telecommunication companies have signed a memorandum of understanding allowing them to do network sharing, namely the 6-way 4G MOCN, which we have successfully implemented.
“The next step is to give monthly instructions to all telecommunication companies to resolve Internet problems state by state,“ he told the media at Wisma Bernama today.
Responding to questions on Internet access issues in Ayer Kuning, Fahmi said several locations have been identified, including some Orang Asli villages.
He said the issue only involves certain telecommunication companies.
“The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has issued a directive. I asked for a solution to be identified last Sunday afternoon. The telecommunication companies said they have carried out several optimisation programmes to ensure these areas get at least moderate coverage — not the best, not yet the best.
“But MCMC has asked them to outline their long-term solutions,“ he added.
Fahmi also said he has often received complaints about Internet access in many areas, not just in Ayer Kuning, to the extent that he views such complaints as rather “retail-like” in nature
“Therefore, I have asked MCMC to review existing data via the Nexus application, which provides internal data, and also via service providers like Ookla, which can identify areas with weak coverage. MCMC will issue instructions to telecommunication companies based on states every month and they must rectify the issue,“ he said.
The current problem is that telecommunication companies only act on receiving complaints. That will now change to a monthly task list that they must complete, he said.
“We are shifting from ‘waiting for complaints’ to ‘this is the list you must complete for this month’,“ he said.
Last Sunday, Fahmi directed all telecommunication companies to submit solutions for poor Internet coverage across the country or face strict action.
