Bill seeks end to selling stolen smartphones
IN a bid to stop the selling of stolen smartphones, a lawmaker is proposing a measure that provides strict policies on buying second-hand cellphones.
Under House Bill 7969, filed by Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan, establishments accepting used smartphones as pawned goods should be required proof of ownership or purchase before acquiring them, as a means to prevent street crimes involving the theft of these items.
The bill states that pawnshops or other establishments buying second-hand telecommunications equipment such as mobile phones are also required to ask the seller to obtain the necessary clearance from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to sell or pawn the article.
The establishment should also secure a clearance or permit from the station commander of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in the town or city where it is located before buying the item.
“These requirements may appear to be cumbersome, but they are necessary to prevent the rise in street crimes involving the stealing of smartphones, which not only lead to loss of property but, in some unfortunate cases, to loss of lives as well,” Yamsuan said.
Street crimes involving cellphone theft appear to have increased when pawnshops started accepting smartphones as pawned items, Yamsuan said.
In 2019, the NTC received a total of 34,353 cell phone blocking requests and concerns, which indicate that these goods were lost or stolen. This number corresponds to an average of 2,863 cellphone blocking requests per month.
The bill aims to amend Presidential Decree No,. 1612 or the Anti-Fencing Law to include provisions requiring establishments to be stricter and more circumspect in accepting smartphones and other telecommunications gadgets being sold of pawned.
Any establishment that fails to get the necessary clearance and proof of purchase or ownership before accepting or buying a second-hand mobile phone shall be held liable for violating the Anti-Fencing Law and its permit or license to operate shall be revoked, as proposed under the bill.
