Consumer Dreams

Consumer Dreams

I read with great interest the article Consumer rights remain
a dream in The Jakarta Post, May 11. It came just when I was
letting off steam about a typical "Indonesian" case of service
with no service, where customers are completely ignored by the
provider.

I hope to make it short but detailed for you to understand. We
have been running our business south of Jakarta, where the lack
of telephone lines forced us to rely on the service of PT Radio
Telephone Indonesia (Ratelindo).

Part of the initial investment in this telephone system
equipment was despite the empty promises (same quality as the
normal line - it is very inefficient and overwhelmed by problems
like echoes, delayed voices, stuttering words, robotic sounds,
clipping, etc.) that generally affected 70 percent of any
telephone conversation.

Even if we asked for problems to be fixed this was never
seriously attended to and almost two years after we got it, it
had only improved a little, leaving us with a stuttering tool to
support our business that relies on good telecommunication.

We believe we are a good customer (we pay an average of Rp
5,000,000 a month) and are punctual in payment. Therefore, my
next request was a discount on the rates. If a phone call that
should last five minutes actually lasts twice as long because
both parties have to keep repeating themselves, why should I pay
full rates?

After months of faxes and phone calls on May 6, 1997, we even
had the lines disconnected as "we did not pay the bills since
January." After providing full supporting documentation they have
been reactivated, but, of course, no apologies.

On May 19 we received a fax from Ratelindo announcing a 5
percent discount in May. What do we do with it? We are not
looking for charity.

After so many months of struggle we have no option but to look
for more reliable sources ... Therefore my questions are as
follows:

1. How important is a customer in a service providing industry
such as telecommunications?

2. How can such a company survive in the long run in this
extremely competitive market and intense capital investment?

3. How can such an industry move forward when the base of its
philosophy is completely neglected: "The customer is always
right." In Indonesia consumers' rights remain a dream.

JEAN PIERRE SEVEKE

Jakarta