Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 25) — A digital advocacy network urged the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to take advantage of the 90-day extension to “reevaluate” the implementation of SIM registration.
“We have seen numerous unresolved issues during the registration period. DICT should look at the difficulties experienced by the public and adjust to the reality on the ground,” Digital Pinoys National Campaigner Ronald Gustilo said in a statement Tuesday.
The issues he raised include the lack of physical registrations in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDA), the technological gap, and Filipinos’ difficulty in securing government IDs required in the registration process.
Gustilo said the DICT should work with the Department of the Interior and Local Government to bring physical registration efforts to the barangay level.
If the DICT fails to fix the issues, he said the suspension of the registration process should “remain on the table.”
“Suspending the implementation of the SIM registration should still be on the table in case there is no significant improvements in the process and mechanisms and if the numbers don’t improve,” Gustilo said.
“The government should always first assume that the unregistered SIMs are being used and that the paramount thought is to ensure that no subscriber will be disenfranchised,” he said.
The DICT, together with the National Telecommunications Commission, and telco operators have been deploying assisted SIM registration in remote areas.
