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Broadband deal whistleblower Jun Lozada urges gov't to provide internet services


Whistleblower and engineer Rodolfo Noel “Jun” Lozada Jr. urged the government to provide internet services, which ensures that services will reach rural communities and far-flung areas in the country.

This as Lozada said he was not in favor of private firms providing internet services in the Philippines.

"I'm still advocating na gobyerno dapat ang magbigay ng broadband sa mga Pilipino. Ang internet naakahalaga sa buhay ng modernong lipunan, sa modernong gobyerno," Lozada said in a radio interview on June 24.

(Government must give broadband services to Filipinos. Internet is needed by modern society and modern government.)

"So ngayon 'di pupwede na iilang pribadong tao sa Pilipinas o sa China, ang magsasabi kung saan siya magbibigay ng internet sa Pilipinas, kailan siya magbibigay ng internet at kung magkano niya ibibigay. Hindi pwedeng ganyan," he added.

(We can't allow a select number of people from the Philippines and China to dictate where internet services would be provided, when it would be provided, and how much the service would cost.)

"Hindi ito pribilehiyo na bibigay ng pribadong tao o kumpanya. Walang utang na loob diyan kasi binabayaran mo sila," he further said.

(This is not a privilege given by a private individual or a company. We don't owe them anything because we are paying for them.)

There would also be no need for government entities to check whether the internet services are being used for "spying" or in violation of privacy rights.

"Kung gagamitin sa masama ito (internet), masama ang idudulot nito. Kung gagamitin sa mabuti maraming mabuti ang magagawa nito. Paano ngayon? Sino magpapatupad niyan? sino magpapatupad o kaya magbabantay?" he said.

(If the internet service will be used for bad things, then it will have a negative effect. If this will be used for good things, it will have a good effect. But what will happen now? Who will implement this? Who is monitoring this?)

"So ang problema ngayon walang kakayahan ang gobyerno natin na ika nga bantayan ang telco provider natin kung paano nila ginagamit yan o kung paano pinapangalagaan ng datos natin na dumadaan dito sa mga broadband providers na ito," he added.

(The problem does not the government does not have the ability  to monitor how broadband providers are taking care of our data.)

Lozada was a whistleblower in the NBN-ZTE deal which involved former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

He was also found guilty of graft for granting separate leasehold rights over public lands to his brother and to a private company with ties to him under the Lupang Hinirang program of the Philippine Forest Corp. (Philforest).

In March, the Supreme Court (SC) affirmed the junking of graft charges against Arroyo over the controversial $329-million national broadband network project with Chinese firm ZTE Corp. — DVM, GMA News

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