MANILA, Philippines — The national government did not object to Globe Telecom Inc.’s reminder for consumers to register their SIM cards, as the April 26 deadline looms.
The Ayala-led telco used its emergency cell broadcast system, in a bid to “instill urgency” as the deadline nears.
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As it is, Republic Act No. 10639, or the Free Mobile Disaster Alerts Act, mandates telcos to send out alerts to their subscribers if man-made or natural disasters strike.
If Filipinos do fail to register their SIM cards, their mobile numbers will be automatically deactivated, but they can relaunch their numbers, according to regulators on Friday.
The Ayala-led telco said on Monday that the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council did not oppose their move, considering that the Marcos Jr. administration did not budge on the April 26 registration deadline despite extension calls from telcos.
That said, the law allows the government to extend registration by as much as 120 days.This move was not welcomed by Globe subscribers, as some trooped to social media to air their annoyance.
Latest data showed that Globe tallied 35.8 million SIM registrations. This was still lower as its customer base stood at 86.7 million. — Ramon Royandoyan