The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is being asked to ease regulations under a 2014 order that banned the construction of telco infrastructure along national roads amid surging demand for connectivity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This was disclosed by the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), which said it joined the National Telecommunications Commission in asking the DPWH to consider proposed amendments to Department Order No. 73, series of 2014.
The order was issued to address the problem of fallen electrical and utility poles on national roads during calamities.
The order said these “create imminent danger to lives and properties and hamper speedy relief operations.” Among others, the rules banned the construction of posts for power and telco companies along national roads.
But the DICT said these restrictions slowed down the roll out of crucial telecommunications infrastructure.
“The indispensable use not just of telecommunications, but also of the Internet and other information services in the new normal, highlights the urgent need for equitable access to affordable, quality and reliable ICT connectivity,” Information and Communications Technology Secretary Gregorio Honasan II said in the statement.
A DPWH spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The DICT said the DPWH was part of a joint commitment in 2017 to implement “more conducive right of way regulations to accelerate the deployment of ICT infrastructure.”
It added that amendments to the order were among the priorities at the recently established Telecommunications Monitoring Group.
The group is an interagency body comprised of members from the DICT, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Presidential Anti-Crime Commission, Presidential Commission on Good Government, Anti-Red Tape Authority and the Office of the Special Assistant to the President.