The Directorate General of Postal and Telecommunication Services believes that the draft is urgent because delays in the realisation of the universal service obligation (USO) program were the result of a lack of a regulatory framework.

Government spokesperson Gatot Dewa Broto said that Governmental Regulation No. 28/2005 on Tariffs on Non-Tax Revenues only stipulated the range of contributions, and Regulation No. 15/2005 on Implementation Guidance on Tariffs on Non-Tax Revenues from Universal Service Obligation is limited to regulating the reception, payment, and reporting of USO funds received. These regulations do not include the necessary regulations to operationalise the USO program. He added that the government was likely to allocate 99% of the USO funds-collected from existing telecom operators to provide universal access.

The USO executive body is to be selected from fixed-line providers, mobile operators, satellite network providers, and other business bodies outside the telecommunication sector.

"However, the provisions and stipulations are still debatable since the government is also waiting for inputs from the people within these two weeks," Dewa Broto added.

Source: Bisnis Indonesia - WDR/Intelecon Regulatory News