Senator Grace Poe on Friday, October 15, called on the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to expedite its investigation on the illegal use of emergency text alert to campaign for one of the presidential candidates for the 2022 elections.
Poe, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Public Services, said the emergency text alerts should only be used during calamities and not by unscrupulous individuals, warning that the act could put people in danger.
"We passed the Free Mobile Disaster Alerts Act or Republic Act 10639 to protect our people through prompt warnings in the event of natural and man-made calamities," said Poe, who sponsored the law in the Senate, in a statement.
"Emergency text alerts can save lives. They must not be used by fraudsters that could endanger the safety of our people," she added.
The NTC earlier opened its probe on the "emergency alert" reportedly received by some phone users as former senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. filed his candidacy for president last October 6.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management, who was authorized by law request mobile disaster alerts from telecommunication companies, said it did not sanction the move. The NTC suspected the use of portable cell sites to to send the alert, which is prohibited under its regulations, and the Radio Control Law (RA 3846).
Marcos, meanwhile, denied having a hand over the text blast, with his camp even claiming that the move was part of a "demolition job" against him.
While she did not specify the incident, Poe said she expects the NTC's investigation "to be swift but thorough to yield results that would also curb the proliferation of illegal devices used in spreading misinformation."
"It is also incumbent for the country’s telecommunications companies to explain how the messages were sent in the guise of emergency alerts," she further said.
"We must safeguard our people against spammers and scammers that could plague the wireless messaging services," Poe stressed.