Mislatel Consortium might be disqualified as the third telco player in the Philippines due to a legal problem with its congressional franchise.
According to Senator Franklin Drilon, Mislatel received its franchise to operate as a telco back in 1998 but failed to operate after a year as required by law. “Mislatel is basically a paper corporation,” he said.
In Mislatel’s defense, they cited that they were allowed to operate in the province of Maguindanao. However, the peace and order situation in the area prevented them from pushing forward with their operation.
Aside from operating a year after receiving the congressional franchise, operating continuously for three years would have prevented this issue too.
Despite these legal issues, Dennis Uy promises that Mislatel will not just be the third telco, but the “best telco in the Philippines”. He owns Udenna Corporation and Chelsea Holdings which compose the Mislatel Consortium along with China Telecom.
Mislatel’s application in the third telco bidding cited a minimum internet speed of 55 mbps.
It’s now up to the DICT to determine the legality of Mislatel’s franchise although Senator Drilon says Congress has the authority to revoke it.
