Acquiring Elon Musk’s Starlink low-orbit satellite will give Manileños a faster and better internet connectivity, Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso said.

Domagoso on Tuesday, March 29, met with Rebecca Hunter, SpaceX senior manager for government affairs, and Raymond Garcia, SpaceX partner-representative for the Philippines and other Asian countries, for the acquisition of Starlink’s satellite broadband internet system for the city.

Getting the system for the entire country is aimed to connect all the islands of the Philippine archipelago and provide internet connectivity even in far-flung areas of the country, Domagoso said.

“As I’ve said before, we will connect Tawi-Tawi to Batanes, 7,100 islands, via a communication backbone through fiber optics. That will take years to develop. Maganda dito (Starlink) bukod sa (aside from) fast and reliable internet connectivity, this is also fast in terms of deployment,” he said.

Domagoso said the city government will allot P25 million for the acquisition of the Starlink’s satellite broadband internet system to give Manilenos a faster and better internet connection.

At least 1,000 satellite dishes will be acquired and will be deployed to 896 barangays, 104 public schools, two colleges, seven hospitals, 15 police stations, and the city hall, he said.

“I hope magawa ito sa buong bansa. Ang gusto natin, makamit ito ng mga ordinaryong tao, na ang bawat tao, magkaroon ng access to reliable, fast internet for them to have an opportunity. Kapag may access sila sa mga ganitong bagay, ‘yung pag-aaral ng bata, madadagdagan ang access niya to information. At kung ito’y magagawa sa iba't-ibang lugar sa Pilipinas, magkakaroon ng komersiyo, hanapbuhay at trabaho (I hope it can be done in the entire country. What we want is for ordinary people to achieve this, so that every person has access to reliable, fast internet for them to have an opportunity. When they have access to such things, young learners' access to information will increase),” said Domagoso, adding it will also create more job opportunities.

The Philippines will be the first country in the Asean region to avail of Elon Musk’s Starlink low-orbit satellite should Domagoso’s plan to acquire the system for the city push through.

The Manila Mayor also reiterated that the Starlink will help the country in disaster and calamity preparedness.

“At higit sa lahat, huwag naman loobin ng Diyos, pag panahon ng ng trahedya, meron tayong redundancy via low-orbit satellite. Dahil sa panahon ng trahedya, sa panahon ng sakuna (And most of all, God forbid, during a time of tragedy, we have redundancy via low-orbit satellites. Because in times of tragedy, in times of disaster), time is always of the essence. Every single moment, we can save lives. ‘Yun naman ‘yung bigger picture na posibleng maging benepisyo ng ating bansa sa pagkuha ng ganitong services (That is the bigger picture that could possibly benefit our country in getting such services),” he pointed out.

“I hope we can avail of Starlink low-orbit satellite soonest. The best success story is in Ukraine when Elon Musk deployed a number of satellites in that country after its internet connectivity was destroyed by Russian forces. It’s in the news. Hopefully, may awa ang Diyos, puwede tayong gumamit ng Starlink sa buong bansa pag tayo naging pangulo sa Mayo (with God’s mercy, we can use the Starlink in the entire country if I get elected as president in May),” he continued.

Domagoso earlier announced that the Manila City Council has authorized him to negotiate with Elon Musk’s company for the purchase of Starlink low-orbit satellite.

He also pointed out that obtaining the Starlink will also be beneficial to freelancers in the country who mostly depend on internet connectivity.

“Maraming di nakakapansin, napakaraming freelancers sa Pilipinas, maraming talented. If they have access to internet, matutulungan natin sila. Maraming job opportunities. If there is a strong internet connection sa lahat ng tao, daan-daang libong freelancers ang matutulungan (There are so many freelancers in the Philippines, so many talented. If they have access to the internet, we can help them. There are many job opportunities. If there is a strong internet connection for everyone, we can help hundreds of thousands of freelancers,” he said.

“Sa akin lang naman, basta kapakinabangan ng tao, across the board, whether agrikultura, edukasyon, kalusugan, trabaho, murang bilihin, huwag ka lang matulog, kailangan matapos natin sa lalong madaling panahon, gagawin natin. Dahil kailangan natin talaga ang mabilis kumilos dahil nasa krisis pa tayo ngayon (For me, as long as it’s beneficial to the people, across the board, whether agriculture, education, health, employment, cheap commodities, just don’t sleep, we need to finish this as soon as possible, and we will. We really need to act fast because we are still in crisis now),” Domagoso added.