Vandalised Telikom cables gives Oro the blackouts

The sabotage to Telkom’s cables in Port Moresby and Lae has affected much more than the two major cities.

Popondetta has been impacted seriously with system outages for major business houses and government departments that depend on Telkom’s network for voice and data communication.

The whole of yesterday and today the Nasfund office in Popondetta was unusually empty while scores of people waited outside hoping the system would come back on. Those who wanted to check status of their applications and get statements of their contribution for various reasons were left frustrated. Many had to travel at immense cost from as far away as Kokoda and Afore by road  to get into the provincial capital, while some travelled in from Tufi.

One Nasfund contributor said: “With the un-predictable weather these days there is potential for flash floods cutting off roads and it is a huge big risk getting here only to be told that the system is down.”

A lone Nasfund officer was sitting all alone hopelessly unable to do anything on his part as he is heavily dependent upon a data link to their main server in Port Moresby.

“There is nothing we can do to serve our members without this vital link. All I can do is put up a brave face, smile and say sorry to our customers,” the officer said with a shrug.

Author: 

Author: 
Adelbert Gangai