SARI-SARI stores and sidewalk vendors will be prohibited from selling sim cards once the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Registration Act takes effect.
National Telecommunications Commission-Davao Region (NTC-Davao) Director Nelson Cañete said during an interview on SunStar Davao’s Facebook live show The Talking Heads that the implementing rules and regulation (IRR) of the Republic Act 11934 or the SIM Registration Act is still being crafted.
Under the Act, telecommunication firms are required to ask for a user’s valid identification documents before their SIM card can be activated and maintain a list of their registered subscribers.
Subscriber’s information includes full name, date of birth, and address of users. All this information is “absolutely confidential” unless it was subpoenaed in aid of an investigation.
It also mandates that they submit a verified list of their authorized dealers and agents nationwide to the National Telecommunications Commission, with updates every quarter of the year.
Cañete said that aside from the mandatory registration, sellers will also be regulated.
This means, sari-sari stores and sidewalk vendors, which have been a go-to place for users to buy SIM cards.
But he said that sellers will also be required to register their names and will be forwarded to NTC.
“Pag mag-take effect ang balaod, mawala na nah sila… Para mahibal-an kung kinsa lang ang authorized outlets na mamaligya’g mga SIM card. Ang sari-sari stores ug mga sidewalk dinha… wala na pud na siya (If the law will take effect, they [sari-sari stores and sidewalk vendors] will be prohibited from selling… So that we would be able to determine the authorized outlets that can sell SIM cards. This means that sari-sari stores and sidewalk vendors will no longer be allowed),” Cañete said.
However, he said they can still be agents but they must strictly comply with the requirements set by NTC.
The official also said the law guaranteed that purchasing SIM cards will still be accessible.
He also said that the mandatory SIM registration won’t be an additional cost to the subscriber. In addition, prices of SIM will remain cheaper.
Cañete, meanwhile, said that the SIM law is important in curbing text scams and spams plaguing mobile users. RGL