Dito courts more ex-military officers to join management team

MANILA, Philippines — Third telecommunications player Dito Telecommunity Corp. is planning to employ more ex-military personnel to further allay fears of possible spying and other security risks given the 40 percent involvement of state-owned China Telecommunications in the company.

Dito Telecommunity chief technology officer Rodolfo Santiago said the company is still courting  retired personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to join the growing team of the new major telco, which is majority-owned by the group of Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy.

Santiago, a retired major general, said Dito currently has onboard at least nine ranking officers who are ex-military, including one who is considered the best in cybersecurity.

“I have specifically recruited a full colonel from the AFP, who we regard in the armed forces as the best in terms of cybersecurity. I was able to convince him to retire early to join Dito to lead our cybersecurity operations,” he said in a virtual briefing yesterday.

“If you are going to scan the local cybersecurity industry, this is true even in other countries, those that have been in the armed forces doing cybersecurity are the best persons to be utilized for very critical cybersecurity requirements,” Santiago said.

Santiago said hiring ex-military men and women is part of Dito’s commitment to ensure that its network would not be utilized to threaten national security.

Concerns of potential security risks and espionage have been raised against Dito given the involvement of China Telecom in the company.

These claims, however, were previously denied by the company, saying that it is first and foremost a Filipino-owned and managed firm which always looks after the interests of the Filipino people.

“These people we have gotten from the AFP, their job is to protect the security of this country, that is something that is in their DNA so that’s why we’re not hesitant to get people from the armed forces,” Dito chief administrative officer Adel Tamano said.

“It’s important for the public to know that these men who are working with us, these are people who have been sworn to protect this country. That’s why really, I just cannot even think why there would even be a shadow of doubt as to why we would ever allow any spying or espionage to be perpetrated by this company just by looking at the men and women working for us,” he said.

Dito will launch its network commercially by March next year. Before doing so, it will undergo a technical audit on Jan. 7, wherein the government will check its capacity to deliver on its first year commitments of covering 37 percent of the population and provide 27 Mbps minimum average internet speed.

According to Santiago, the new telco may not be so attractive yet on the initial stage of its commercial launch given its limited coverage, as opposed to the incumbents.