By Madhusha Thavapalakumar
[caption id="attachment_84889" align="alignleft" width="300"]
TRCSL Director General Oshada Senanayake[/caption]
The Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) has removed the ring-in tone it imposed on subscribers requesting the public to donate money to the President’s COVID-19 Fund “Itukama”.
When The Morning Business contacted TRCSL Director General Oshada Senanayake to obtain his views on the matter, he told us that it was removed with effect from yesterday (20).
“We assigned that ring-in tone only for Monday and Tuesday. It is not there anymore,” Senanayake stated.
The ring-in tone, which was set on all voice connections to be heard by the caller, was widely criticised on social media by subscribers who termed it “arbitrary” and in bad taste, as neither the regulator TRCSL nor the service providers obtained consent of the respective users before assigning the said tone.
However, Senanayake said the ring-in tone was removed purely because it was originally planned to be assigned only for two days and not due to the complaints raised against the ring-in tone.
Furthermore, he added that the TRCSL assigned this tone to mobile subscribers as this is a national cause and noted that it does not force anyone to donate but merely creates awareness.
“What we have done is not for a private fund but for the Presidential COVID-19 Fund. Something like that is done in the national interest. These problems are created by people with vested interests,” Senanayake added.
Soon after the local spread of Covid-19, telecommunication service providers assigned a ring-in tone message explaining safety measures that should be followed to prevent Covid-19. Even though this tone too was imposed arbitrarily and was in place for over a month, users were not agitated about it as much as they were for the donation ring-in tone.
The Itukama Project is a fundraising initiative for the Covid-19 Healthcare and Social Security Fund established by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to support and strengthen activities aimed at mitigating the spread of Covid-19 as well as related social welfare programmes.
The fund was established with a donation of Rs. 100 million from the President’s Fund. The fund will address the critical healthcare needs brought on by the pandemic and improve Sri Lanka’s long-term preparedness for health emergencies. The fund recently passed Rs. 1 billion in donations.
TRCSL Director General Oshada Senanayake
TRCSL Director General Oshada Senanayake[/caption]
The Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) has removed the ring-in tone it imposed on subscribers requesting the public to donate money to the President’s COVID-19 Fund “Itukama”.
When The Morning Business contacted TRCSL Director General Oshada Senanayake to obtain his views on the matter, he told us that it was removed with effect from yesterday (20).
“We assigned that ring-in tone only for Monday and Tuesday. It is not there anymore,” Senanayake stated.
The ring-in tone, which was set on all voice connections to be heard by the caller, was widely criticised on social media by subscribers who termed it “arbitrary” and in bad taste, as neither the regulator TRCSL nor the service providers obtained consent of the respective users before assigning the said tone.
However, Senanayake said the ring-in tone was removed purely because it was originally planned to be assigned only for two days and not due to the complaints raised against the ring-in tone.
Furthermore, he added that the TRCSL assigned this tone to mobile subscribers as this is a national cause and noted that it does not force anyone to donate but merely creates awareness.
“What we have done is not for a private fund but for the Presidential COVID-19 Fund. Something like that is done in the national interest. These problems are created by people with vested interests,” Senanayake added.
Soon after the local spread of Covid-19, telecommunication service providers assigned a ring-in tone message explaining safety measures that should be followed to prevent Covid-19. Even though this tone too was imposed arbitrarily and was in place for over a month, users were not agitated about it as much as they were for the donation ring-in tone.
The Itukama Project is a fundraising initiative for the Covid-19 Healthcare and Social Security Fund established by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to support and strengthen activities aimed at mitigating the spread of Covid-19 as well as related social welfare programmes.
The fund was established with a donation of Rs. 100 million from the President’s Fund. The fund will address the critical healthcare needs brought on by the pandemic and improve Sri Lanka’s long-term preparedness for health emergencies. The fund recently passed Rs. 1 billion in donations.
TRCSL Director General Oshada Senanayake