Councilor Danilo Dayanghirang on Tuesday opposed calls to ban Facebook and other Meta platforms, saying the government should strengthen regulation, enforce existing laws and hold technology companies accountable instead.
In his privilege speech before the City Council titled “Do Not Disconnect the Filipino People: Regulate, Protect and Demand Accountability,” the chairperson of the Committee on Finance, Ways and Means, and Appropriations and the Committee on Games and Amusements, said a blanket ban would affect millions of Filipinos who rely on the platform for communication, livelihood, information and community participation.
“Let me be clear: I support accountability, child protection, and the fight against scams, cybercrime, misinformation and harmful content. But I do not support an indiscriminate ban on Facebook,” Dayanghirang said.
He said Facebook has become part of everyday Filipino life, connecting families, supporting small businesses, providing information, facilitating employment and helping communities organize.
“Facebook has become part of everyday Filipino life-connecting families, supporting small businesses, providing information, facilitating employment, organizing communities, and enabling public participation,” he said.
Dayanghirang also cited constitutional protections for freedom of speech and expression, the right to information and privacy of communication, saying any restrictions must have a legal basis and observe due process.
He noted that existing Philippine laws already address various forms of online abuse, including Republic Act No. 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act, and Republic Act No. 10173, or the Data Privacy Act.
Instead of an outright ban, he said authorities should identify the specific violation, determine who is responsible and apply the appropriate legal remedy.
“Therefore, the question should not simply be: ‘Should we ban Facebook?’ We should ask: What specific violation occurred? Who is responsible? What law applies? What remedy is available? And is a nationwide ban necessary and proportionate?” he said.
Dayanghirang said violations should be dealt with through enforcement rather than by cutting off access for legitimate users.
“If a scammer commits fraud, prosecute the scammer. If illegal content is identified, require its removal through lawful procedures. If Meta violates Philippine law, impose the appropriate sanctions. If existing laws are inadequate, strengthen them,” he said.
He also cited the Department of Information and Communications Technology’s (DICT’s) position that blocking Facebook should be considered only as a last resort after other lawful measures to secure compliance have been exhausted.
Dayanghirang called for stronger child protection, digital literacy and enforcement against cybercrime and harmful online content while maintaining access to legitimate users.
“Let us protect our children, fight cybercrime, strengthen digital literacy, and demand accountability from technology companies while protecting the legitimate users who depend on these platforms to communicate, work, learn and participate in nation-building,” he said.
He said addressing online abuse should focus on accountability and enforcement rather than automatically removing an entire communication platform.
“The answer to abuse is accountability. The answer to cybercrime is enforcement. The answer to harmful content is effective regulation not automatically the removal of an entire communication platform from the people. I am against the removal of Facebook,” he added.
