Sen. Sherwin Gatchallian Proposes Removal Of Prepaid Expiry Date
SHERWIN GATCHALLIAN – Senator Sherwin Gatchallian recently made a bill which aims to remove the expiration date for mobile prepaid credits.
According to an article in ABS-CBN, he filed “Prepaid Load Forever Act of 2019” which aims to disallow telecommunications from imposing an expiry date on the validity of all denominations of prepaid credits, may it be purchased via card or e-load.
It also prohibits telecoms from pulling the plug on prepaid credits on an active account.
Gatchallian said in an explanatory note of Senate Bill No. 365 last July 11 that every peso spent to purchase load credits must still be utilizable until it is fully consumed.
As of the moment, as per the report, the credits that worth ₱300 and above have at least a one year period before it will expire. This was based from a government memorandum circular as of 2017.
Gatchallian’s bill imposes a fine of ₱ 100,000 to ₱1 million or an imprisonment which will last to 2 to 6 years to any director, officer, or employee of a telecom firm who chooses to violate the bill.
The senator pointed out that the nation’s leading telecoms Globe and PLDT have an amalgamation of prepaid subscribers of about 142.43 million. That is 96.6% of the nation’s mobile users. While they hae an amalgamate of 5 million postpaid subscribers.
What do you think? How will you react to this? Woud you agree? Let us know more about it.
READ ALSO – Davao City: Siblings, Visitor Slain Inside Boarding House