Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar has expressed dissatisfaction with the low quality of service for mobile operators, including non-return of unused internet data and drop calls
Mustafa Jabbar said, ‘Consumers are not able to use the internet with money. It is a kind of deception.
This was stated by Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar at a policy dialogue jointly organized by the Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) and Bangladesh Internet Governance Forum (BIGF) on telecom policy and ecosystem in the telecom sector. The dialogue was held at Sonargaon Hotel in the capital on Wednesday.
In the dialogue, Minister Mustafa Jabbar said, “I could not speak properly with the SIMs of several operators. When you call, it is cut off in the middle of the conversation. Customers should be compensated for call drop. It would not be logical not to pay compensation. It cannot be a business policy.
The minister expressed dissatisfaction over non-return of unused internet data. He said, ‘Customers are not able to buy internet with money and use it. It is a kind of deception. This should not be allowed to continue. Try to understand the minds of the customers about the service.
Chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) Shyamsunder Sikder has also expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of service of mobile operators. He said, ‘The service of mobile operators means there is a serious shortage. I have already filed some cases against these. “It’s a kind of fraud,” he said, noting that customers expire before they can fully use the internet. There is no need for government revenue from such income. Customers should be given what they deserve.
Shyamsunder Sikder also complained about weak network. He said companies are not yet using fiber optics at the desired level. He said that the quality of service is getting lower for this too.
In the policy dialogue, the businessmen and policy makers of the telecom sector have called for making the tax system and ecosystem business friendly. They said that the tax in the mobile sector of Bangladesh is comparatively much higher than that of the neighboring countries. The return on investment of operators is not satisfactory. On the other hand, the price of mobile voice and internet is lower than other countries of the world. If the tax burden is borne in this way, it will be difficult for companies in this sector to survive.
The program was conducted by Hasanul Haque Inu, Chairperson of BIGF and Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Robi Axiata’s Chief Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Officer Shahed Alam and Ericsson Bangladesh’s Country Manager Abdus Salam presented articles on telecom policy and ecosystem.
Secretary of Posts and Telecommunications was also present at the ceremony. Khalilur Rahman, BTRC Spectrum Director General Mohammad Moniruzzaman, Robi’s Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) CFO M Riaz Rashid, Banglalink’s Chief Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Officer Taimur Rahman, Grameenphone’s Acting CCAO FOERNET, CMAOFERN TEMOR Secretary General SM Farhad and others.
