Pinaaamyendahan ni Albay Rep. Joey Salceda ang Building Code upang makapaglaan ng espasyo para sa telecommunications facilities.
Sa ilalim ng kaniyang House Bill 8534, inaatasan ang mga building at property gaya ng condominium na maglaan ng espasyo na maaaring pagtayuan ng telecom facility.
Paalala ng kinatawan na nang maisabatas ang Building Code noong 1977 ay hindi pa naikonsidera ang pag-usbong ng digitalization.
Ngayon kasi ang telecom service ay para na lamang plumbing o patubig na basic service na kinakailangan ng publiko.
Lalo pa aniyang nakita ang pangangailangan sa internet connection noong pandemya ng magpatupad ng work-from-home arrangements.
Kaya naman kung ang isang lugar ay may malaking populasyon na gumagamit ng internet ngunit may limitadong telco service ay mahihirapan ang bandwidth at babagal ang koneksyon.
“In Metro Manila alone, there are at least 160,000 condominium units, housing close to 1 million people – mainly working-class families, students, or young professionals in greatest need of fast and reliable internet,” punto ni Salceda.
“High concentrations of people within limited spaces can be taxing on telecommunications services, especially on bandwidth, unless adequate provision is given for telecommunications facilities. Without specific mandates to ensure digital connectivity in such complexes, the ability of internet service providers and other telecommunications service providers to deliver to their clients will be significantly hampered,” dagdag ng mambabatas. | ulat ni Kathleen Jean Forbes
