NTC urged to speed up refunding of text overcharge

MANILA, Philippines—Militant lawmaker on Wednesday asked the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to expedite the refund on texting overcharge that it has ordered to the country’s telco providers.

Bayan Muna Representatives Neri Colmenares and Carlos Zarate filed a motion to intervene before the NTC for the commission to compel telco providers to comply with the NTC’s decision on slashing the texting rate and refunding the excess charge.

“It is respectfully prayed of this Honorable Commission that a writ of execution be issued in the instant cases, ordering each of the respondents to comply…” the motion read.

The government telecommunications regulator ordered the Ayala-led Globe Telecom and Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) units, Smart Communications and Digital Mobile Phil. (Sun Cellular) to slash their short message service (SMS) rate to “other networks” to 80 centavos from P1.

This means the telcos should refund the excess texting charge of P0.20 that all in all could reach billions of pesos since the order became effective last Dec. 1, 2011, NTC director for regulations Edgardo Cabarios has said.

In addition to the refund, the decision also included a P200 fine a day for telcos that won’t comply.

The telco said they would challenge the refund order before the Court of Appeals.

But the lawmakers said neither the Supreme Court nor the appellate court has issued a temporary restraining order on the NTC’s decision, and thus the telcos should have already complied with the refund.

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