More than half of flood-affected telco towers in Johor repaired - Fahmi

JOHOR BAHRU - More than half of the 160 telecommunications towers affected by the floods in Johor have been repaired as of yesterday, said Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil.

He said that only those in Batu Pahat are yet to be repaired as the area is still flooded.

"The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission has also identified several towers that need to undergo a site heightening process to prevent them from being affected by the floods again.

"We have successfully carried out the process in Kelantan and Terengganu, which are often hit by floods. In Johor, we will look at the trends and areas at risk to make sure we can raise the position of towers in as many locations as possible.”

He told reporters this after presenting aid to flood victims in the state and visiting the Digital Economy Centre (PEDi) at Kampung Sungai Tiram here today.

In a related development, Fahmi said the Communications and Digital Ministry (KKD) will propose to the Education Ministry to use PEDi in the state as home-based teaching and learning (PdPR) locations for students whose schools are still affected by floods or used as temporary relief centres.

"Currently, we are still gathering information to find out which schools are still affected, the students and which PEDi areas are close to them and can be used (for PdPR),” he said.

Commenting on his meeting with Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi yesterday, Fahmi said KKD and the state government have agreed to set up a task force to resolve telecommunications issues in Johor.

The task force’s first meeting was held today, and the ministry was represented by its secretary-general Datuk Seri Mohammad Mentek.

"This is a pilot project. If it succeeds in resolving the issues here, we will implement the same initiative in other states in the future,” he said.

Asked about the case of actor Kamal Adli being beaten by an unknown individual while attending a programme in Singapore that went viral on social media last night, Fahmi said the ministry was still waiting for a full report on the matter but stressed that the safety of all parties, including artists, is an important matter - BERNAMA