Was It All a Hoax? Or Just Usual ICE
Mishandling?
Some 7.000 people got up earlier
than usual, some decided to miss work, in a chance to obtain their
cellular service following the announcement published in the local
newspapers last week.
But, what they left with was empty hands and frustration, as the Instituto
Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE), reserved it's decision and didn't
tell anyone.
The announcement came last week that ICE would sell off on Monday 10.000
cellular telephone lines - 5.000 GSM and 5.000 TDMA - lines that have
been returned to ICE for lack of payment or cancellation by subscribers.
However, there were no cellular lines to be purchased and those who made
the early morning jump on the expected long lines were left
disappointed.
ICE says it will stay firm on it's decision to serve those customers who
put their name on the waiting list. Accordinfg to
Orlando
Cascante, jefe de Servicios Móviles (head of Mobile Services) the
waiting list is preferred to the long lines that have formed each time
ICE announces lines available.
In the past almost two years, cellular service customers got used to
being able to walk into an ICE office, with the necessary paperwork in
hand and the deposit and obtain cellular service.
In the past three months all that changed when ICE got denied approval
of the contract it signed with the Ericsson company to install 600.000
new GSM lines, following accusations of corruption and payoffs stemming
from the last contract ICE awarded to the Alcatel company that installed
the current GSM network.
Two weeks ago, the Contraloría General de la Republica (Comptroller's
office) finally approved the Ericsson contract, but it won't be until at
least December before that service can be in operation.
In the meantime, ICE and it's customers must make the best of the
situation as the current 900.000 cellular lines - 400.000 GSM and
500.000 TDMA - are all used up.
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The ICE Pavas office was quiet at
9:00am yesterday morning following an announcement last week that
ICE would be selling off 10.000 cellular lines. ICE changed it's mind
at the last minute and those who make the early morning visit left
with disappointment. |
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