Last-minute jitters in the lower house over network tender

Last-minute jitters in the lower house over network tender

By Soe Than Lyn and Kayleigh Long   |   Thursday, 27 June 2013

Presidential spokesman U Ye Htut has announced via his Facebook page that the outcome of the telecoms tender will take place at 5pm on June 27.

This comes following speculation that the announcement would be delayed due to a lower house resolution to put plans on hold pending the implementation of new telecoms legislation.

Communications Minister U Myat Hein addressed the lower house of parliament on the morning of June 27, as the deadline for the mobile network tender outcome announcement drew nearer amid mass confusion over whether or not it would go ahead.

He affirmed that licence announcement would be taking place, drawing agreement from MPs.

The proposal to hold off making an announcement passed in the Pyithu hluttaw [lower house], but Ingyanyan constituency MP Daw Dwel Bu said it seems it will not be forwarded on to the Pyindaungsu hluttaw [upper house] as it was "not a legislative issue".

The last-minute show of uncertainty in the lower house seems to be based largely on concerns about foreign entities eclipsing local interests, as well as the relative inadequacy of the current regulatory framework.  

U Myo Swe, secretary of the Pyithu Hluttaw's Transport, Communication and Construction Committee cited these concerns when bringing forward the proposal to the lower house.

"Given the lack of Telecommunication Laws in Myanmar, [investments under the network tender] must be done with existing laws – State-owned Enterprises Law and Myanmar Investment Law. I believe only the Telecommunications Law, which must be harmonized with present time, can protect the interest of the nation and its citizens in the long term", he said.

"Therefore I would like to propose to the government should set joint venture between foreign and local telecom firms but it should start after the new telecommunication law enacted," U Myo Swe said.

U Myo Swe said he was not alone in his concern that the regulatory framework would not provide protection for local interests, while recognising the impact that this last-minute show of instability could have on investor confidence.

"We all accept that the government's telecom tender process was a good initiative, but still have concerns over whether the local firms may face losses in future due to foreign companies holding a monopoly on the market," he said.

 

Source: http://www.news.myanmaronlinecentre.com/2013/06/28/last-minute-jitters-in-the-lower-house-over-network-tender/