Telkom network service rerouted

BOGOR (JP): The Bogor office of state-owned telecommunication company PT Telkom has decided to move part of its network service to PT Telkom in Tangerang starting on April 1 as part of efforts to bring customers back, officials said on Tuesday.

Reports said 1,000 locals of a housing complex in Tenjo district in Bogor refused to use the company's services for it charged them with long distance call fees.

"The (Tenjo) area has a 0251 code, so the customer has to pay for long distance calls to Jakarta and Tangerang.

"This was a burden to the locals for most of them conducted business in both cities," spokesman of Telkom in Bogor, Harismaya, said.

The residents preferred to use the net, provided by Telkom's rival, the private telecommunication company Ratelindo, which gives a local tariff to residences in the Tenjo area calling Jakarta and Tangerang.

"Therefore we decided to relocate the network service to Tangerang to enable locals calling Jakarta and Tangerang to have a local charge," Harismaya said, adding that the company cannot afford to lose its investment in the area.

He said Telkom had already built a network of 2,000 phone lines in Tenjo, matching the number of houses in the area.

"We've put a huge investment into building the network and we understand the objections of those who feel they are being overcharged," he said.

Harismaya admitted that only 100 customers have been listed since the network was created.

"We're very concerned about this. In Jagakarsa, a district of Tangerang, the locals only have to pay a local tariff to call Jakarta," he said. "It is time to make a change here."

Harismaya stated that most Tenjo residents were Betawi (native Jakartan) people and migrants who conducted business in Jakarta. (24/edt)