Cellphone menace & social responsibility
THIS is apropos of Mahtab Bashir’s letter ‘Cellphone: a source of trouble’ (Dec 30, 2011). I think that ignorance of society about recourses in such issues is also responsible for the rise in such social and corporate evils. People don’t know or even don’t bother to report a crime thinking that no authority is going to listen to them. It is not like this.
Some institutions are still rekindling hopes in society and the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority is one of such institutions.
I lodged three complaints, through email, with the PTA against three different cellphone numbers from which I received obnoxious calls and SMSs. And each time the PTA took severe action against the perpetrators and their cellphone companies. A trail of complaint processing was available at my inbox. Even those mobile companies contacted me for apology and the SIMs of the perpetrators were blocked.
However, the PTA and cellphone companies never heed to my advice to issue subscribers’ directories by mobile phone companies on the pattern of the PTCL’s directory. PTCL phones are very unlikely to be used for illegal activities and obnoxious calls due to availability of identification of each of their subscribers.
Actually, by not issuing subscriber directories cellphone companies are minting money through obnoxious calls and SMSs and only causing agony and immorality in society.
RAIHAN A.K. LODHI
Karachi
Source: Dawn
” 
” 
” 
” 
” 
