PLDT Inc.’s wireless arm, Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart), has secured permits from various local government units all over the country, helping accelerate its plan to build new towers to deliver better connectivity and reach previously underserved areas. In Northern Mindanao alone, PLDT-SMART has received more than 40 permits for various projects, from tower upgrades to new cell site construction, with a total of 1,519 permits received nationwide as of August 2020.
“The initiative of the national government is making it easier for us to build more towers quickly and will be a big help in improving coverage,” said Alfredo S. Panlilio, Smart President and CEO and PLDT Chief Revenue Officer. “We are grateful to the LGUs who have supported this initiative, and we will reciprocate by providing a great customer experience.”
In El Salvador City, Misamis Oriental, several new towers are part of the scheduled rollout. For Ron Salva, City Planning Officer, these communication facilities will improve internet connectivity and other mobile phone services in the area. “New cell sites are essential for a growing El Salvador City. This will also help the LGU in public service, especially in case of emergencies.”
El Salvador City is mostly an agricultural economy, but the city has a lot of industrial resources which will definitely benefit from a more robust network. Other government agencies like the Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Training Institute and the Pag-asa also have regional offices located in the area.
In Cagayan de Oro City, the majority of its residents and businesses are in the downtown Poblacion area. A bigger part of the city’s land area, however, is located in hard-to-reach hinterlands. Because of transportation and access concerns, the barangays in these areas have been the last to connect to the outside world. With the approval of these new cell site projects, several hinterland communities will now be connected for the first time, while others are expected to experience significantly improved services.
Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Oscar Moreno welcomes this development. He said, “Over the past seven years, we have endeavored to connect the rural barangays by opening up roads and paving them as they crisscross from one barangay to another. These barangays are now physically connected by these roads, and Smart’s cell towers will certainly provide a big boost in the improved connectivity of these barangays to the whole world. We are extremely grateful for this.”
Barangay Bayanga, which is more than 10 kilometers from the city center, will also benefit from a new tower. Felipe Baang, Bayanga Barangay Chairman said, “The signal improvement in our barangay will help students in their online studies and expedite the services of the barangay, most importantly in our emergency response efforts. With a better signal, we can easily communicate with our constituents who are in need.”
The ramped-up nationwide tower rollout is part of PLDT and Smart’s sustained capital expenditures on their networks, having invested Php 432 billion from 2011 to September 2020, and anticipating capex of at least P70 billion for 2020. (PR)
