KUALA LUMPUR – Global tech giants are calling on the prime minister to put a stop to a decision by Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong that they say will affect the quality of Malaysia’s internet infrastructure, according to a November 20 letter sighted by The Vibes.
Microsoft, Google and Facebook wrote to Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in a joint memorandum “to express our urgent concerns” over Wee’s decision on November 13, when the minister signed a federal gazette revoking the cabotage exemption for foreign ships specialising in the repair of submarine cables that connect Malaysia to the larger internet network worldwide.
Wee’s predecessor, Anthony Loke, implemented the exemption as it helps speed up such repairs, which could help mitigate internet disruptions in the country.
Loke’s policy helped quicken the repair time from 27 days to 14, making Malaysia more competitive and on a par with Vietnam, which has a turnaround time of 12 days, said the letter.
The tech titans told Muhyiddin that the revocation will severely affect Malaysia’s economy.
“Submarine cables are the global backbone of the internet, and they play a critical role in Malaysia’s economy. This revocation will result in increased delays in the repair of damaged submarine cables, affecting internet stability, quality and speed to Malaysian consumers as repair times are severely affected, which will impair almost all facets of the economy and society in Malaysia:
* e-commerce (domestic and cross-border trade);
* companies (SMEs, large local companies, multinational corporations);
* foreign investment (including data centres, outsourcing centres, regional offices);
* tech innovation and adoption (artificial intelligence, virtual/augmented reality, data analytics, internet of things, blockchain);
* finance (including e-wallets and online payment systems);
* remote workers, freelancers (gig economy), and job seekers;
* health (including Covid-19 communications and emergency response);
* education (including online learning and examinations);
* rural economy (including micro-traders, fishermen, and farmers in Sabah and Sarawak);
* national cybersecurity (threat detection and prevention);
* disaster management and crisis communications; and,
* social communications and online content consumption.
“At a time when millions of Malaysians are dependent on the internet for their livelihoods, the restoration of submarine internet infrastructure, representing investments of billions of ringgit, is being unnecessarily delayed every time a repair needs to be carried out.”
They expressed concern that the decision was reached without proper consultation with “submarine cable investors, data centre investors, (the) wider industry, the ministries and agencies listed above, and Malaysian public, who will all be adversely affected by the internet instability caused”.
The move will affect these agencies and ministries:
* Communications and Multimedia Ministry;
* International Trade and Industry Ministry;
* Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry;
* Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Ministry;
* Rural Development Ministry;
* Health Ministry;
* Education and Higher Education Ministries;
* Finance Ministry;
* Defence Ministry;
* Foreign Ministry;
* Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for economic affairs;
* National Disaster Management Agency, Prime Minister’s Department; and,
* National Cyber Security Agency, Prime Minister’s Department.
The tech giants also flagged the prospects of a monopoly, as there is one local shipping company that “currently owns only one cable-laying vessel, which does not meet the vessel specification as required by the cable owners to perform the submarine cable repair works”.
It is understood that the firm in question is Optic Marine Bhd, which is in the process of registering a Malaysia-flagged cable-laying vessel. The group’s executive chairman is Lim Soon Foo, while his son, Ronnie Lim Hai Ling, serves as group chief executive.
There are only 60 such specialists in the world with capabilities to repair submarine cables, and the end of the cabotage means foreign vessels will have to apply for a domestic shipping licensing exemption.
“The abrupt decision to revoke this exemption, without any meaningful stakeholder consultation with foreign investors and owners of submarine cables, is of serious concern, as it does not project regulatory stability or a policy environment that is conducive to foreign investment,” said the tech companies. – The Vibes, November 23, 2020
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