Gatchalian lauds Duterte’s nod on lifetime cellphone number bill

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Sherwin Gatchalian lauded the signing of the Mobile Number Portability Act, which he said would enable subscribers to keep their mobile number even if they change service providers.

Gatchalian, the author of the bill, said this law “will spur competition and efficiency between telcos.”

READ: Duterte signs into law Lifetime Cellphone Number Act 

“The signing of the Mobile Number Portability Act before the start of operations of the third telco will spur competition and efficiency between telcos and break the duopoly in the telecom industry by removing a potential barrier for subscribers not to patronize the new entrant because they cannot keep the same mobile number,” he said in a statement on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Senator Panfilo Lacson also welcomed the signing of the law.

In a tweet, Lacson congratulated his colleague for the landmark legislation.

“I take pride in amending his bill by removing the connectivity charge when crossing telcos,” he added.

Kudos to Sen Win Gatchalian for this landmark legislation. I take pride in amending his bill by removing the connectivity charge when crossing telcos.

— PING LACSON (@iampinglacson) February 19, 2019

Lacson earlier recommended the removal of the interconnectivity fee or charge imposed by public telecommunications entities (PTEs) on mobile phone subscribers for domestic calls and SMS (text) messages. /ee

READ: Lacson bats for removal of interconnection fees for cellphone subscribers