Wind Mobile, Canada’s fourth largest mobile service provider, offered incoming Syrian refugees free phones and two years of free phone service. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberal government plan to bring 10,000 Syrian refugees to Canada before the end of the year and 15,000 more displaced people to the country in 2016.
Lifeline Syria, a group working for the safety of people in crisis in the recent Syrian warzone, hopes to bring at least 1,000 of the incoming 10,000 refugees to the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). WIND Mobile has promised free phones and a two-year plan, with no cost, to any refugee who wants it in the GTA.
The incoming people have had one unanimous voice among them.
“No thanks, we’ll stick with Rogers.”
The Canadian wireless telecommunications company has felt a severe backlash since their initial offering was made public.
“We really have everyone’s best interests in mind,” said Emily Stravinski, a Wind Mobile spokesperson. “A free plan like this is quite useful, especially since the plan’s we’re providing allow for international calling. We are truly surprised about this turn of events.”
Incoming citizen, Mikhail Boulos, had this to say about WIND’s offer: “It is very nice of them to offer us free service, but we have heard such good things about Rogers.”
Boulos emphasized the generosity of Rogers and the real sense of “Canadiana” that he felt when looking at the company’s website.
“The red and white feels more inclusive, more Canadian, than orange and blue, you know,” said Boulos.
The deal that Rogers has offered incoming residents of the GTA, or Canada as a whole, is nothing short of non-existent.
When asked about why they prefer this route of paying more for cell service, Damascus native Abul-Fazl Saab said, “Canadians tend to seem very pleasant and happy. If they can pay the exorbitant costs that Rogers asks for and still maintain a positive attitude, we can too. We want to fit into society and Wind’s offer, although nice, just seems too good to be true.”
Rogers has failed to send an official statement on the matter, but The Ontarion was able to catch up with an intern who is essentially volunteering at the large windowless building that Rogers operates out of downtown Toronto.
The intern, who wished to remain unnamed said, “They’ve cleared out my office because they’re expecting that they’ll have to turn it into a temporary safe from all the money they’ll make on the new cellphones and plans. It is a windowless broom closet, but I think it’ll definitely hold all of that extra money.”