Telkom and cable installation fraud

Telkom and cable installation fraud

From Kompas

On Jan. 25, 2001, I contacted Telkom number 147 to register
for a new telephone line and was given Registration No. 89821.
Two weeks later, Feb. 8, 2001, I contacted 147 again to inquire
about this registration and was told that I had to wait because
of the limited master network.

On March 14, 2001, I got a call from someone claiming to be
from the state's telecommunication company PT Telkom. I was told
that he would come to my house to install the cable against
payment of Rp 87,750. As I was busy and also because I thought
the installation fee asked for was quite reasonable, I agreed. On
March 15, 2001, however, I contacted the Palmerah service point
and learned that our application for a new telephone line was
still waiting.

I was curious, then, how the person calling me about the cable
installation could know my name and address. A quick guess would
say that it was a trick of Telkom insiders. However, the officer
at Palmerah service point (Mrs. Wiwik, coordinator of association
of house cable installers for Telkom) said that Mr. Supandi, the
person who had telephoned us about installation, was an impostor.

Head of customer service at Telkom's head office, Mr. Husni,
said that this was a frequent problem. He said that Telkom would
catch the perpetrator and have a meeting with 147. Therefore,
improve the performance of 147 and socialize the program of
Telkom service protection.

So, those interested in getting a telephone line from Telkom
must be careful and work with Telkom, if necessary, to catch this
bogus Telkom official. One thing to bear in mind is that this
bogus official would not leave his telephone number.

AZIS SUBIARTO

Jakarta