The Cavite Provincial Government of Cavite announced that they would end their free Wi-Fi service in the cities of Bacoor, Imus, and Dasmarinas on March 2, 2024.
Its cause was the expiration of the contract between the Cavite Government and the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT).
“We would like to inform all users of Linkod Kabitenyo that the contract for the cities of Bacoor, Imus, and Dasmarinas will expire on March 2, 2024. Thus, the free wifi service in the affected areas will be discontinued,” the Cavite Provincial Information Office wrote.
They didn’t specify the exact reason why the Cavite Government didn’t renew its contract with PLDT.
What is LINKod Kabitenyo?‘
LINKod Kabitenyo was a free WI-FI access program launched in Cavite in 2015, it was supposed to grant internet access to its residents for a limited time a day, at no cost.
Currently, the cities of Bacoor, Imus, and Dasmarinas are the only places in Cavite where LINKod Kabitenyo is being offered and it was planned to have five phases to cover all LGUs in the province.
In 2021, Cavite Governor Juanito Victor “Jonvic” C. Remulla and PLDT Group Chairman Manuel V. Pangilan signed a contract to expand the free Wi-Fi service in the whole province.
According to the LINKod Kabitenyo website, the public Wi-Fi service benefited “600,000 students, 3.6-M Caviteños, and visitors who travel to Cavite every day.”
The expiration of LINKod Kabitenyo’s contract was expected to affect thousands of Caviteños who cannot afford to pay for Wi-Fi subscriptions.
