Towers built by the company may also be leased to existing and new telcos to further improve their services amid government efforts to encourage the entry of a new player in the industry.
The audit report came just a few days after the COA released a report severely criticizing the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) for its dismal implementation of the government's free WiFi program.
The 22 scholars underwent a nine-week training course and completed five modules that cover topics identified by the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd).
In an audit report last month, the COA sternly criticized the DICT for its disastrous implementation of the government?s free public WiFi program and raised doubts over its ability to finish the P6.507-billion project this year.
One of the agencies badly affected by the malfunction is the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), whose core system will now be hosted in an undisclosed site in Makati City.
A "major hardware meltdown" has prevented the BIR from accessing its Electronic Tax Information System (eTIS) and is now causing an enormous disruption of its operations.
The measure mandates the DICT, in coordination with the DOTr and other concerned agencies, to provide free Internet access in land transportation and roll-on/roll-off (roro) terminals nationwide.
DICT acting secretary Eliseo M. Rio Jr. reportedly said he will quit his post if he is outvoted by the oversight committee for the entry of the third major telecommunications player in the country.
A party-list lawmaker has criticized the DICT for the offline government websites that contributed to the confusion brought about by the "mis-suspension" of classes on Monday, July 9.
