THE HEAD of the Philippines’ poll body has urged the youth to advocate for a law that would regulate social media, saying it could help mitigate the threats posed by political dynasties.
Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Garcia said such a measure is needed to fight widespread disinformation that mainly appeals to the interests of political families, especially during the election season.
“The youth should be the ones fighting and shouting for this. You will say ‘nothing will happen’ but 57 years of political dynasties? Are we going to wait? Are we waiting for another 37 years for the Social Media Regulation Act to be crafted?” the Comelec chief said during the 2024 Rappler Social Good Summit last Oct. 19.
However, Garcia said efforts to come up with a social media regulation are being delayed by critics who argue that the law would affect freedom of expression.
“We’re not even close. When you restrict and limit certain freedoms, it is always a highly debatable scenario. And therefore, it took us several years before we passed the Anti-Terrorism Act because it will restrict certain freedoms. In the same manner, any regulation of social media will likewise not see the end of the day at any moment or any time soon,” Garcia told The Flame.
In the same forum, Movement Against Disinformation co-founder and lead convener Rico Domingo said lawmakers, most of whom are born into political dynasties, are unwilling to pass a social media regulation law since it would go against their self-serving goals.
“They have all these things, all the resources to muddle the political wiring such that the people will be eternally beholden to them,” he added
Domingo said his movement has faced several setbacks in combating malicious information, citing the experience of a red-baited journalist from Cagayan De Oro whose case remains unresolved.
Garcia lamented that corruption within the political arena is becoming more prevalent and is worsening the voting behavior of Filipinos.
“It is a wake up call to everyone that the threat is really real. Narco politics, wedding politics [and] POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators) politics have emerged. Not because there are no choices [for] Filipinos, but there are no choices for the country,” he said.
The forum titled “Protecting Information Integrity and Truth Tellers Amid Elections” was held at the Teresa Yuchengco Auditorium at De La Salle University, Manila. F — Christian Querol and Joss Gabriel Oliveros
