Ensuring transparency of the Public Telecommunication Service Fund

On the afternoon of August 28, the conference of full-time National Assembly deputies continued to review and give opinions on a number of major issues with different opinions on the draft Law on Telecommunications (amended).

Specific regulations on types of telecommunications resources granted through auction

Reporting on a number of major issues in explaining, accepting and revising the draft Law, Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee on Science, Technology and Environment Le Quang Huy said that regarding the Public Telecommunications Service Fund, the Standing Committee of the Committee proposed to keep the regulations on the Fund in the draft Law.

Conference scene. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

In response to the opinions of National Assembly deputies, the regulations on the Fund in Chapter III have been amended, supplemented, and adjusted accordingly so that the Fund can operate more effectively in the direction of: Legalizing a number of regulations that have been implemented stably; supplementing regulations on support forms; support methods including bidding, ordering, and assignment of tasks (Clause 4, Article 30); assigning the Government to regulate a number of specific contents on the Fund's operations (Clause 1, Article 31); adjusting regulations on the responsibilities of the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Information and Communications (Clause 2 and Clause 3, Article 31); supplementing regulations on the responsibilities of provincial People's Committees in coordinating proposals for the development and implementation of local service provision programs (Clause 4, Article 31).

Regarding the design, construction and installation of telecommunications works (Article 65), the Standing Committee of the Committee has revised and supplemented the regulations on the installation of telecommunications works on public property to ensure the following principles: not affecting the operations of agencies and organizations managing and using public property, and the functionality of public property; ensuring technical feasibility; landscape, environment, safety and security; complying with technical standards to ensure safety and health for people (Clause 1, Article 65). At the same time, the draft Law supplements the regulations that enterprises installing telecommunications works are responsible for preserving and maintaining telecommunications works (Clause 2, Article 65). The contents on costs and accounting related to the installation of telecommunications works on public property will be implemented in accordance with the law on the management and use of public property.

Regarding the auction of the right to use telecommunications numbers and Internet resources (Articles 48, 50 and 53), the Standing Committee of the Committee believes that the 2009 Telecommunications Law has provisions for auctioning the right to use telecommunications numbers and Internet resources, but this has not been implemented in practice. The main reason is that it is difficult to fully identify the types of codes and telecommunications numbers to be auctioned and it is difficult to determine the starting price for the auction.

To overcome these problems, the draft Law has been revised in the direction of: Specifying the types of telecommunications resources granted through auction; stipulating the method of determining the starting price for each type of resource based on international experience, in accordance with the country's economic development situation and people's consumption level. Accordingly, the starting price for auctioning mobile subscribers is determined by the average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita at the current price of the year immediately preceding the auction time calculated for one day. The draft Law also stipulates the order and procedures for auctioning in accordance with the law on property auctions (Clause 6, Article 50).

Consideration of responsibility for the recovery of unused telecommunications facilities

Quang Nam Province National Assembly delegate Duong Van Phuoc speaks. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

Giving his opinion at the meeting, delegate Duong Van Phuoc (Quang Nam) proposed to add regulations on the responsibility of telecommunications enterprises in reclaiming unused telecommunications works. The delegate pointed out that in reality, there are many telecommunications works, unused telecommunications equipment, and telecommunications cables that are "tangled" in urban areas, even rural roads and residential areas, causing loss of urban beauty and potential safety risks.

According to the delegate, the reason is that the network providers are irresponsible, while the use, construction, and installation do not ensure technical and aesthetic standards. The delegate proposed that there be strict sanctions to handle these cases so that businesses are responsible for ensuring technical and aesthetic procedures, and collecting unused equipment and cables.

Concerning the Public Telecommunication Service Fund, delegate Nguyen Minh Tam (Quang Binh) stated that the Ministry of Information and Communications has sent a summary report on the Fund to provinces and cities, clearly assessing the effectiveness of the Fund's operations in the past time, thereby affirming that the Fund has played a major role in supporting the implementation of the State's policy on providing public telecommunication services, ensuring flexibility and timeliness in implementing this Fund in remote areas, reducing the gap in information access between regions.

However, to promote the role of the Fund, delegate Nguyen Minh Tam suggested that the Law should consider the contents related to support objectives, operating principles, ordering mechanism, regulations on contributions, and use of financial resources of the Fund to ensure transparency and promote the role of the Fund, ensuring the task of spending on socio-economic development, the rest should be assigned to the Government for detailed regulations.

In addition, the delegates also requested the Drafting Committee, especially the Government, to continue to review and evaluate the contents that need to be implemented in the coming time and have regulations on the allocation rate of funds from the Fund for each specific program to implement more effectively in the process of maintaining the Fund.

According to VNA/Tin Tuc Newspaper

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