Dad wants Singapore dream to start with stable internet

CEBU, Philippines — The Cebu City Council has urged the Management Information and Computer Services (MICS) and the Department of General Services (DGS) to look into and provide a report regarding the stability, speed and other pertinent information about the internet connection of the respective offices at the City Hall.

Councilor Edgardo “Jaypee” Labella II, in a privilege speech, talked about the dream of Mayor Michael Rama of making Cebu City second to none, through his vision of transforming it into a Singapore-like city.

“What is it in Singapore that we envisioned to be as great as this country? How can we realize such a vision? Perhaps, one of the most important factors to take into account while discussing being on par with the said country is its technology and internet connectivity,” said Labella.

“In light of our desire to be successful as Singapore, we should guide our progress so that the same goal is realistically attained. What would you say about the city's technology and internet connectivity? Can we at least say that we are halfway to the desired outcome if we take into account, for instance, the internet connectivity at City Hall level?” he added.

Labella, who chairs the council’s committee on information and communication technology, said that Singapore is one of the most technologically advanced information and communication technology or ICT markets in the world.

He said Singaporeans are highly connected and have achieved their goal of having a topnotch, secure, and resilient 5G infrastructure that has served as the backbone of their digital economy.

Labella said he wants to see Singapore-style technology implemented in the city, and to do that, he intends to begin the said innovation at the City Hall.

“When I started working at City Hall, I noticed how our internet connectivity lags behind and that this slow internet connection suggests that this deficiency hampers the efficiency of City Hall employees in their daily work… How can we implement faster connections and bandwidth reliable internet throughout Cebu City, if we cannot achieve our goal in our own building?” he said.

The councilor stressed that a stable and steady increase in internet speed can boost the competitiveness of the city.

“From City Hall down to the barangays and public locations, I hope to provide Cebu City constituents with better and faster internet services with the help of the telecommunication sector and our local government,” he said.

With this, the council members have agreed to provide a timetable for the provision of a reliable internet connection at the City Hall, stating that it should be achieved by January 2023.

Labella said that a reliable, quick, and secure internet connection comes as standard in a Singapore-like dream.

He said to conduct business, they must insist that the internet service providers carry out their duties and that the local government pay for the necessary high-performance, secure internet accounts.

He requested assistance and cooperation from all telecommunication firms, the citizens of Cebu City, Rama, and his fellow city councilors to achieve the dream of making the city a hotspot for stable internet connection.

“Making Cebu City one of the cities with the fastest internet is a bold idea, but it's not impossible. It just entails a lot of responsibilities for the key people of the city to fulfill,” said Labella.

“May we always be reminded that we should not consider technology as an expense but rather an investment in new strategic capability because it can help our city achieve topline growth (better time-to-market for services and improved service delivery),” he added. —GMR (FREEMAN)