NTC-7 exec: Signal shutdown during Miss U event ‘overkill’

CEBU, Philippines - The legal officer of the National Telecommunications Commission-7 described the shutdown of cellphone signals in Lapu-Lapu City during the staging of the swimsuit competition of Miss Universe as overkill.

Lawyer Alan Macaraya said the shutting down of the signal for the whole city for an event confined to single venue was too much.

“I think it is disproportionate on the need of the pageant… It is the call of the Philippine National Police since they may have knew information that we don’t know. But for me it is an over kill,” he said during a weekly forum hosted by the Association of Government Information Officers in partnership with the Philippine Information Agency-7.

Macaraya, however, agreed that turning off mobile signals during the Sinulog was necessary.

“For Sinulog, it is a must at least to minimize the risk, but as to the pageant, I do not know what happened. I don’t know if it was the right thing to do or whether it can be considered overkill, but that is how I see it,” he said.

He said that the police could have used signal jammers in the venue were the swimsuit completion was held instead of the total disruption of the mobile services.

 “Personally, and I do not speak for and in behalf of the commission, the best thing the (pageant organizers) should have done was to install jamming devices to cut (signals) within the vicinity only,” he said.

He admitted that the NTC-7 received several complaints during the occasion. According to him, it was not necessary and “disproportionate on the need of the pageant.”

The Police Regional Office-7 recommended the shutdown of mobile services as part of the security measures because mobile signals can be used to set off explosives. (FREEMAN)