Cell phone dealers have till yearend to register

By Clarissa Batino Inquirer News Service

THE National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) is giving mobile phone dealers and repair shops until the end of the year to comply with a year-old order for them to register with the regulator.

The commission feels the policy lacked sufficient information campaign, which resulted in the launch two weeks ago of a program called “NTC on Wheels,” NTC Chairman Ronald Solis said.

Like the Bureau of Internal Revenue, which rolls out its “BIR on Wheels” program during the tax season, the NTC is conducting an information campaign and bringing its program to malls where mobile phone shops and service centers abound, he said.

The program has no intention of apprehending the thousands of phone dealers and repair shop operators that have yet to enlist, Solis said even as he admitted that the low registration turnout had been discouraging.

The NTC estimated that there are 10,000-15,000 mobile phone dealers and 5,000-10,000 cellular phone repair shops in Metro Manila alone.

As of September, only 303 service centers and 695 phone dealers in Metro Manila had registered with the NTC. Nationwide, only 1,501 repair shops and 1,883 mobile phone dealers heeded the order for registration after the commission's circular took effect on Sept. 25, 2004.

“This is going to be purely an information drive and not an apprehension [drive]," Solis said. "We are also putting up registration booths in malls and areas where these shops can mostly be found." With INQ7.net