Free public Wifi in Plaza Sugbo and Plaza Independencia to be delayed until November.
Free WiFi Delayed
A free public WiFi was set to be implemented in select areas of Plaza Sugbo and Independencia in the month of July. However, due to technical issues, the planned implementation has been delayed to November 2024.
The author of the free WiFi resolution, Councilor Jerry Guardo has recently announced that the project be postponed to further address the issues regarding the project’s pricing, and its mobilization and demobilization services; a concern raised by Councilor Nestor Archival during their regular session last July 17, 2024.
Too Expensive
Councilor Nestor Archival has raised a concern regarding the pricing for the project, saying that based on its Program of Works and Estimates (Powe) the project is disadvantageous to the city. Further disclosing that based on the Powe, the city will be charged with Php 345,567.00 for the mobilization and demobilization alone. Which Councilor Archival deemed to be too expensive.
However, Councilor Rey Gealon offered a proposal that would benefit the government and will have no cost at all.
He said, “There is a proposal that an entity is offering free Wi-Fi for the city hall without cost to the city government, and it would just be entering the portal every hour, just like in the airport. What they want is that they will insert ads for 30 seconds, and that is what’s for them, and for us, a one-hour internet usage just like any other public facility abroad.”
— To further address these issues, the city council has agreed to conduct an executive session on August 21, 2024 inviting representatives from the Department of Engineering and Public Works, Bids and Awards Committee, Information and Communications Technology, contractor of Trends and Technologies, Department of General Services.
