MANILA – The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) announced that the deadline for SIM card registration would not be extended, despite calls from various groups to do so.
The decision was made public on Wednesday morning.
“[DICT] has received and acknowledged the request of Public Telecommunication Entities (PTEs) to extend the SIM registration period pursuant to Republic Act 11934 or the SIM Registration Act. However, at this point, there is no extension of SIM registration,” the DICT said in a statement posted on its Facebook page.
Less than half of the total SIM card holders have registered under their respective telecommunications provider, with only one week left to register, according to a report by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).
Globe, Smart, and DITO have called for an extension of the SIM registration period due to the lack of IDs and digital illiteracy in disenfranchised areas.
Last Thursday, April 13, DITO submitted a position paper to the DICT requesting a 120-day extension from the April 26 deadline.
Smart filed a petition before the DICT and NTC on April 12 to give “ample time to all mobile users, particularly the marginalized sectors and those located in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas of the country, to register their SIMs.”
Globe requested alternative next steps to address the lack of SIM card registrations. One idea was to ask government authorities to accept alternative forms of identification or “conditional registration” to keep the active status of SIM cards owned or used by subscribers who have yet to obtain a valid ID.
Smart reported a registration rate of 52.4% on April 16, with DITO at 40.2%. Globe only had a 35.8% registration rate on April 17.
Journalists and activists petitioned the Supreme Court to issue a temporary restraining order on the SIM Registration Act, citing threats to data privacy and freedom of speech.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed the SIM Registration Act on October 10, 2022, to “promote the responsible use of SIMs and provide law enforcement agencies the necessary tools to crack down on perpetrators who use SIMs for their crimes, consistent with the declared policy of the law.” (Sofia Abrogar © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
