DICT in no rush to extend SIM registration

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is not hurrying to decide whether to extend the SIM (subscriber identity module) card registration beyond the April 26 deadline.

Jocelle Batapa-Sigue, ICT undersecretary for industry development, said that they want subscribers to register in the next few days within the deadline.

“We want to encourage Filipinos to register during the last 12 days before deadline on April 26,” Sigue told The STAR.

However, Sigue gave assurance that the DICT was already holding meetings to discuss the possible deadline extension.

“Meetings are conducted to decide on the extension and ensure that it will really serve its purpose. As to whether there will be an extension, and how long the extension will still be decided in the coming days,” Sigue said.

As of the last DICT update, the number of SIM card registrations has reached 66,220,334 last April 11, which is just 39.41 percent of the total SIM card subscribers at 168,977,773.

Two of the Big 3 telcos in the country, Smart Communications Inc. and Globe Telecom Inc. have issued a call the other day to extend the April 26 deadline for SIM registration, as none of them have reached half of their user bases yet.

Failure to register SIM cards before the deadline will result in deactivation, rendering them unusable for voice calls, text messaging, and mobile data services. This action is part of the government’s effort to improve national security and curb fraudulent activities such as scams and identity theft.

However, the SIM Card Registration Law said the deadline was extendible by up to 120 days.