Law to increase penalties for tampering with telecoms facility tabled in House
KINGSTON, Jamaica — Legislation providing for a significant increase in the penalties under the Telecommunications Act for trespassing, meddling, interfering or tampering with any telecommunication facility, was tabled in the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
Making his contribution to the 2025/26 Sectoral Debate, Minister of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport, Daryl Vaz, said for years, telecommunications service providers have complained about the additional cost imposed on their businesses because of theft and vandalism of telecommunications infrastructure.
“Earlier this year, operators were faced with a repair bill of more than US$200,000 through one act of vandalism, while the current penalties in the law for these nefarious actions are a mere fraction of the cost,” Vaz said.
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“We are waging the war on serious crimes and wanton criminality, and we are winning, and we intend to do the same here with theft and vandalism of equipment,” he added.
The Law Reform (Amendment of Penalties) Act was tabled by Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Fayval Williams.
On another matter, Vaz said Hurricane Beryl taught the country some valuable lessons, including the vulnerability of the communication infrastructure and its interdependence on other utilities.
“Last year, I was hard on our telecommunication service providers and even on the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR), but only because, like all my colleagues here, I want the best for this country. Some promises are easy to keep; others require grit and hard work to see them to fruition,” he said.
He noted that for this hurricane season and beyond, a more agile and robust response is anticipated.
“Our major telecommunication providers have promised to up their game, from moving more equipment on island once an announcement of an impending hurricane is made, to investing in additional generators and solar technology to decrease dependency on a single source of energy and ensure greater up time for cell sites,” the minister said.
— JIS
