FILE PHOTO: Residents in the coastal town of Calumpit, Bulacan gathered at the town hall to register their SIM cards. (Contributed photo)
MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) decision junking appeals to stop the implementation of the subscriber identity module (SIM) Registration Act is a big boost to the government’s efforts to register phone users, Senator Grace Poe said Thursday.
Poe said this after SC rejected pleas to issue a temporary restraining order against Republic Act No. 11934, and after the government chose to extend the SIM registration deadline for 90 days.
Several organizations like the National Union of People’s Lawyers have asked SC to declare the law unconstitutional as it supposedly infringes on the privacy of individuals.
READ: Petitioners ask SC to declare SIM Card Registration Act unconstitutional
“The Supreme Court’s verdict on the SIM Law is a big boost as registration continues,” Poe said in a statement.
“It affirms the need to have all mobile subscribers get enlisted for our safe mobile use,” she added.
According to Poe, government and telecommunication companies must work hand-in-hand to increase internet speeds so that more people would register their SIM cards and comply with the law – especially with the deadline being extended.
“We urge concerned government agencies and telcos to work with 5G speed to get the public to register their SIM,” she said.
“Concerns must be addressed like the lack of government ID by some mobile users that prevent or discourage them from registering,” she noted.
READ: SIM card registration extended for 90 days – DOJ
The inability of several individuals to present identification cards allowed for SIM card registration has been blamed as a factor in the low registration turnout.
Some lawmakers suggested that more IDs should be used for the program to avoid disenfranchisement of phone users who need SIM cards on a daily basis.
READ: Ako Bicol solon to telcos, gov’t: Assist seniors, PWDs who want to register SIM
However, the Department of Information and Communications Technology on Tuesday maintained that the low turnout was only due to the habit of Filipinos to perform tasks at the last minute. — With reports from Maria Liezl Projella, trainee