People complain about phone rate

BEKASI: There have been a number of complaints about overcharging by many telephone kiosks (Wartel) in Bekasi.

"I made a two-minute phone call to a friend's cellular phone and had to pay Rp 11,337, while at another telephone kiosk the charge (for a call of the same length) was only Rp 6,000," Saparuddin, a resident of Bekasi, said on Tuesday.

Similar complaints were lodged by other customers, who grumbled about rates that are much more expensive than the official ones.

They urged state-owned telecommunications company PT Telkom, which provides the network for telephone kiosks, to take action against those kiosks that are overcharging.

An official at the Bekasi branch of PT Telkom, Sugiri, said earlier that 43 telephone kiosks in Bekasi had made changes to the network provided by PT Telkom. This, she said, affected the calculation of the duration of calls, to the detriment of customers.

She said the company was not responsible for these violations, but promised that the kiosks in question would be dealt with in the near future.

She also suggested that people lodge complaints with the Association of Indonesian Telephone Kiosks.--Antara