The city government of Manila is planning to acquire Starlink’s low-orbit satellite from SpaceX Enterprise that will provide high-speed broadband services for Manilenos, especially public school students in the city.

On Thursday, the City Council of Manila, through Resolution 46, authorized Manila Mayor and Aksyon Demokratiko standard-bearer Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso “to negotiate and enter into a contract with SpaceX Enterprise for the use of Starlink, the world’s most advanced broadband internet system, in the city of Manila.”

During a press conference during Aksyon Demokratiko’s campaign sortie in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, Domagoso confirmed the passage of the resolution.

“I was informed by the City Council of Manila that it has passed a resolution authorizing me as city mayor to negotiate with SpaceX Enterprise Group, which is the marketing arm of Elon Musk’s Starlink company,” he said.

Domagoso said that among those who will greatly benefit from Starlink’s advanced broadband internet system are the public school students in Manila.

It is common knowledge that the problem of internet connectivity has been one of the biggest challenges faced by students and teachers doing online classes, and even employees working from home due to the restrictions brought about by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

“Wala ng dead spots, wala ng mabagal na signal o (There won’t be any dead spots, there will no longer be slow internet speed or) no signal which affects the online learning process of students,” he said.

The Manila City Council in its resolution noted that Space Exploration Technologies Corp. or SpaceX is an American aerospace manufacturer founded by Elon Musk with more than 1,700 Starlink satellites in space.

“While most satellite internet services today come from single geostationary satellites that orbit the planet at about 35,000 kilometers, Starlink is a constellation of multiple satellites that orbit the planet much closer to Earth, at about 550 kilometers, and cover the entire globe,” the resolution read.

Domagoso added that the city of Manila will greatly benefit from the services offered by Starlink’s low-orbit satellites for disaster preparedness and in the event of natural disasters and calamities.

“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 the help of God, we can use Starlink nationwide in case I get elected as president in May),” Domagoso said. (PNA)