As is well known, U Mobile has received a contract from the Ministry of Communications and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission to develop Malaysia's second 5G network.
Many have wondered when U Mobile will develop the network, and today, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil responded to a question from Chong Zhemin (Pakatan Harapan-Kampar) on this matter in Parliament, and said that the process of developing the network cannot begin until certain responsibilities are settled by U Mobile towards DNB.
He did not specify what these responsibilities need to be settled, but said that it will take about five months before this happens, and U Mobile can begin the process of developing the network throughout Malaysia.
Part of the said responsibilities may be related to the repayment of loans granted through the Ministry of Finance to start Digital Nasional Berhad and also develop Malaysia's first 5G network worth RM16.5 billion. U Mobile will need to pay off their portion of the loan before the process of developing the second network can begin.
Digital Minister Gobind Singh Deo said that the government will not bear any losses from the development of these two 5G networks.
Meanwhile, Fahmi Fadzil also said that the basic work process can be done by U Mobile first, based on the working papers and business plan presented to the MCMC.