NTC, NCRPO tackle sale of stolen phones

By Non Alquitran
The Philippine Star 01/26/2006

Top officials of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) met yesterday to add "more teeth" to the government’s effort to stop the sale of stolen cell phones in Metro Manila.

Officials agreed there is a need to conduct more raids on establishments suspected of buying and selling stolen units.

"We must be more aggressive in the campaign against these traders," Eastern Police District (EPD) director Chief Superintendent Oscar Valenzuela said following the meeting at the office of NTC Commissioner Ronald Solis in Quezon City.

Joining them at the meeting were Delilah Deles, NTC regional director for Metro Manila and the four other district directors of the NCRPO.

The NTC and the NCRPO said requirements for phone vending should be changed for the purpose of establishing the identity of the seller and the legitimacy of the transaction.

"The traders would be asked to report to police transactions involving the buying and selling of cell phones," Valenzuela said. "Sellers should be able to show proof of ownership."

The meeting stemmed from the case of two TV reporters whose stolen PDA phones were being sold at stalls of a shopping center in San Juan.

The NTC and the NCRPO would ask cell phone traders to execute a deed of sale in every transaction entered into. Joint teams would also conduct periodic inspections on establishments selling phones.

Valenzuela said violators would be charged with violation of the anti-fencing law, which carries a penalty of six months to six years imprisonment.

The EPD director also called on victims of theft to report the incident to the NTC so their phones can be included in the list of stolen units.

He said the NTC’s list would regularly be forwarded to traders to guide them in their transactions