MANILA, Philipppines--Speaker Prospero Nograles said Friday that the House of Representatives will review the franchises given to telecommunications companies to find out if they were allowed to charge subscribers for sending text messages.

Nograles, himself a habitual texter, said even the poorest Filipino household spends P25 to P60 daily to communicate wirelessly through text messages. That, he said, is roughly the cost of two kilograms of rice or 10 packs of instant noodles.

The House leader said projections that oil prices in the world market will increase even further will make life even more difficult, and "it is the obligation of the government to find every available option to help the public cope with the present economic situation."

"We have to review the specifications of their franchises. We are in the middle of a very difficult economic situation and it will be a great help if we can remove the use of SMS from their daily budget," Nograles said.

Nograles said the House may also amend the franchise of the country's telecommunications companies to compel them to stop charging their customers for text messaging.

Nograles made the remark after Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza suggested that telcos make the short message system of SMS free of charge.

Reached for comment, Smart Communications spokesperson Mon Isberto said the company was deferring comment "pending clarification of the government proposal."

"I fully support Secretary Mendoza's proposal to make SMS free of charge. I will immediately direct our committees on franchise, oversight and on telecommunications to look into this and review the congressional franchises of these telecom companies," Nograles said.

"We have to check whether they are legally allowed to charge for text messages. If their franchise allows them to do so, we can make corrective measures and file a resolution as soon as possible for the National Telecommunications Commission to address this concern," he added.

Nograles said that he will ask the House committees on legislative franchises, on information and communications technology and on oversight to review the legislative franchises.

The Speaker is known to send his press statements and media comments via text. He started the practice when he was still majority leader of the 13th Congress and continued the habit even after he became the leader of the House.

Nograles believes text messaging has become a necessity even among the poor who rely on this technology for their day-to-day personal and business communication requirements.