FROM its humble beginnings as a Posts and Telegraphs Department under British rule in the late 1800s to a conglomerate that employs over 27,000 people, Telekom Malaysia (TM) has grown with the nation.
TM chairman Tan Sri Dr Sulaiman Mahbob deemed the organisation the “nerve centre” of Malaysia’s economic transition.
“We are an institution which has played an important role in nation building besides being the backbone of communication facilities in the country.”
TM, an investee company of Khazanah nasional Bhd (Khazanah), is involved in Malaysia’s socio-economic development alongside creating technological milestones,” he told the New Straits Times in an interview to mark Malaysia’s 60th Merdeka Day celebrations.
Sulaiman said its high-speed broadband (HSBB) and suburban broadband (SuBB) infrastructure were among its key contributions to nation building.
To date, HSBB services are available in all major cities in Malaysia. In bridging the digital divide, TM is a key partner and enabler of the universal Service Provision (uSP) in cooperation with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), promoting the wide spread availability and use of network and application services through out Malaysia.
The facilities have also laid the ground work for Malaysia to transition into the digital economy, which is an aspiration highlighted in the national Transformation 2050 (Tn50).
Sulaiman said TM was actively involved in building a K-economy and digital economy for Malaysia by facilitating this shift.
“We are here in the thick of things, to deliver Convergence and Go Digital as we move beyond connectivity into quad play, and new value-added digital and smart services. We have delivered in the past and we will take on this challenging role to suit the country’s demands.”
The industry driven by TM is also critical in ensuring that the economy is competitive, seamlessly inter connected and able to encourage the growth of industry and services.
He said communications also facilitated the shift from labour intensive industries to intellectual ones.
“As Malaysia’s convergence champion, we will continue to deliver relevant convergence lifestyle communication services and end-to-end business solutions to all our customers via the five pillars of Smarter living, Smarter Businesses, Smarter Cities, Smarter Communities and a Smarter nation; guided by our vision ‘To Make life and Businesseasier, for a Better Malaysia’,” he said.
It is involved in designing smart residences such as Iskandar Puteri in Johor and transportation systems in Cyberjaya, Selangor. Now, the role has been expanded to creating a smart nation.
When asked how TM was different from the competition, he said it was the only player with a comprehensive sweep of communication infrastructure and services.
“We have fixed broadband services, mobility services and the Internet of Things. It is basically everything from phone to app on at least the national level. With more than 20 submarine cable systems owned and leased around the world, that makes us the gateway to the world,” he said, adding that regardless of the service provider one used in Malaysia, at some point all operators would have to rely on infrastructure which TM had laid.
“No one else has the reach we have to serve the nation, butthat’s not just it. We also have a higher purpose, which is to go beyond and chart the future,” Sulaiman said.
He said while its HSBB service, uniFi, hit the one million subscriber mark in June, millions of Malaysians were served by the company through its products and services as well as its corporate social responsibility initiatives.
TM’s contribution is, however, not limited to the economy.
“Beyond products and services,wedeliver life Made easier to the nation by supporting socio-economic development through education, innovation and social initiatives,” said Sulaiman.
“As part of our thrust to enhance human capital development, we have also given out nearly RM500 million in scholarships and financial aid to 13,000 primary, secondary and university students since 1994 through Yayasan TM.”
“Over 49,000 graduates and diploma holders from ourMultimediauniversity (MMu) have also entered the Malaysian workforce and 97 per cent of its graduates have been recorded as employed within six months of graduation.”
Sulaiman said TM contributed RM2.4 million for 14 schools under its school adoption programme.
“We have built Information and Communication Technology labs, held ICT-based skills and training workshops, motivational seminars and created modules for robotics courses under the programme. We have also given aid to schools for the disabled in Sabah,’ he added.
As part of its larger role to bridge the digital divide, TM also provided free broadband services to 5,500 community centres and schools in partnership with MCMC.
“TM has never stopped giving back.It’s in our blood and every TM staff knows that we are first and foremost here to build a better Malaysia. The balance of meeting stakeholders’ expectation and fulfilling an agenda is a heavy responsibility, yet we still do that while looking after our employees”.
He said TM was especially excited about the Kuala lumpur Sea Games (Kl2017), as Malaysia plays host after 16 years. Besides being Kl2017’s platinum sponsor, TM, through TM Team Malaysia, is uniting Malaysians to show support for the national athletes who compete in Kl2017. TM Team Malaysia has also been declared as the “Official Supporter of the National Athletes”.
“Team Malaysia is much loved. We have 1.5 million followers on our FB page dedicated to the team. TM also promotes sports developmentthrough its sponsorship of TM Piala Malaysia (Malaysia Cup) and the national football team.
Its Mencari Ramli reality TV show with TV3 seeks football talent aged between 14 and 16. Five of its previous seasons’ winners have been placed in either national or state football teams.
“Our overall aspiration is that we continue to be a main player in the area of communication while supporting the government in its transformation plan through the field of communication. We also want to continue to ensure the nation becomes more efficient, competitive and technologically advanced to make life better for all,” Sulaiman said.
“We were there in Taiping in 1887 when the first phone call was made, we are here now and we will be there in the future, in whatever form. We will continue to serve Malaysia.”