SIM card bill provision may be challenged – Pimentel

MANILA, Philippines — A possible “out of topic” provision in the recently ratified SIM Card Registration Bill that mandates social media users to use their real names and phone numbers in creating accounts may be questioned in courts, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III said yesterday.

Pimentel issued the statement after some quarters raised the issue of a presidential veto of the provision, which was inserted during the bicameral conference committee proceedings on the respective versions of Senate and House of Representatives to come up with a single and final version of the bill.

“That provision can be questioned in court on the grounds that it is an out of topic provision,” the senator told dzBB.

The ratification of a bill is the final step before it is sent to Malacañang for signature of the President.

Pimentel, however, said unlike the annual budget bill whose specific provisions can be vetoed and the rest enacted into law, all other measures can only be vetoed by the President as a whole.

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, who authored the provision, said his amendment “will provide citizens, especially the victims of fake news, online harassment and cyber libel, legal recourse and protection against those who hide behind anonymity and fictitious names.”

“It is our little contribution to fight the anonymity that provides the environment for trolls and other malicious attacks to thrive in the age of social media,” Drilon said in a statement.

He said the provision would prevent anyone from making anonymous accounts online so they could attack anyone endlessly and viciously.

“I hope this signals the end of the troll era that infected and caused further division in our country,” he said.

The provision will also aid authorities in dealing with a barrage of cyber libel complaints, he said.

The Philippines is home to millions of troll accounts.

In 2019, “Facebook took down a network of accounts that were engaged in inauthentic behavior,” Drilon said.