Mayor Eyes Legal Action Against Telcos Over Refunds

By Joseph Bernard A. Marzan

Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas announced on Tuesday, January 7, that the city government is considering legal action to compel telecommunications companies to refund customers for service interruptions caused by their underground cabling efforts.

In a statement, Treñas said he had directed the City Legal Office to study the possibility of requiring telcos to compensate the public for the inconvenience experienced during the outages.

The interruptions began on Friday, January 2, and persisted until Monday, January 6.

“Reliable internet connectivity is essential in today’s generation, and our residents deserve uninterrupted service for their work, education, and daily activities,” Treñas said.

“The City Government will explore all legal avenues to ensure that consumers are protected and fairly compensated for any inconvenience caused by service interruptions,” he added.

While the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) provided temporary internet access to government offices near Plaza Libertad, Treñas noted that this was insufficient.

“This is not a permanent solution, and we urge all telecommunication companies to fast-track the restoration of their services,” he said.

The announcement followed a written apology from Dane Macapagal, head of PLDT, Inc.’s Panay-Palawan Division, on Monday, January 6. Treñas had earlier demanded Macapagal’s resignation if the apology was not issued by 5 p.m. that day.

PLDT assured customers that it is replacing its old cables with high-grade fiber cables and pledged to restore full service by January 7.

The disruptions stemmed from the city government’s initiative to dismantle aerial cables along J.M. Basa Street (Calle Real) as part of its underground cabling ordinance, which was enforced starting January 1.

City Regulation Ordinance No. 2023-006, effective March 13, 2023, gave public utility providers 240 days to relocate their cables underground.

The ordinance applies to plaza complexes, Sunburst Park, J.M. Basa Street, Senator Benigno S. Aquino Jr. Avenue (Diversion Road), and all heritage sites in the city.

MORE Electric and Power Corporation, the city’s distribution utility, began its PHP 96-million undergrounding project in May 2023, with completion expected in October 2024.