Time for consumer action

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I WRITE regarding the recent developments regarding the change in Cable & Wireless Ja. Ltd. policy pertaining to the installation of telephone service and the efforts of the Jamaica Public Service to recover money they took from the helpless consumer in the first place.

The government allowed C&W continued monopoly status because of the promise of hundreds of thousands of new phone lines to be installed. New lines would normally mean service plus a rented telephone. The newly announced 'masterjack' policy will foist on additional costs to obtain service, onto the public coupled with C&W's high rates. This is a major shift in policy. If the government was aware of this then they have done the nation a huge disservice; if not, then C&W negotiated with the government in bad faith, must having known of this policy change for some time.

In the case of the JPSCo it is definitely a clear stick-up job. JPSCo overcharged the consumer and was ordered to repay such. This they did but not before introducing a special tariff that effectively wiped out benefits of the repayment and then announcing that they 'returned' more than they should. A plain case of robbery.

Jamaicans recognise the implications if we allow the government to let these utility companies operate in this piratical manner.

Rise up, let your voices and pens be heard. Let the government realise we can, and will agitate. So-called leaders political and otherwise, now is the time to organise the people and agitate peacefully but forcibly. The time is now and the cause is noble.

I am etc.,

CALVIN STEPHENSON, E-mail: biggs@jol.com.jm, Via Go-Jamaica

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