The Cebu Provincial Board approved a resolution on July 13, 2026, urging members of the House of Representatives to sponsor legislation regulating social media access for children aged 16 and below.
The proposal includes a provision to hold parents liable if they knowingly and intentionally allow their children to violate the intended regulatory law regarding internet and social media use.
Citing data that 97 percent of Filipino children aged 16 to 17 have social media access, the board seeks to address concerns over cyberbullying, inappropriate content, and declining youth values.
TO SAFEGUARD the well-being of young people in digital spaces, the Cebu Provincial Board (PB) has approved a resolution urging Cebu’s members of the House of Representatives to sponsor legislation regulating social media use by children aged 16 and below.
The resolution, endorsed by the Liga ng mga Barangay Cebu Province and Provincial Board Member Celestino Martinez III, was approved on Monday, July 13, 2026. It proposes that any legislation regulating children’s use of social media should hold parents liable if they knowingly allow their children to violate the law.
“For proper implementation of any such measures regulating the use of the internet and social media platforms by our youth, it will become necessary to include a provision in any such legislation penalizing the parents who will willingly and intentionally allow their children to violate the regulatory law,” the resolution reads.
The measure follows the Tacloban shooting incident involving two minors, which authorities linked to excessive social media use.
Call for regulation
In his privilege speech, Martinez said the decline in values among the youth is fueled by unregulated and unrestricted access to social media.
“Today, our children are witnessing increasing hostility on social media; they are exposed to the erosion of civility, the widespread use of foul language, the normalization of profanity, cyberbullying and disturbing and inappropriate content,” Martinez said.
“These influences are being absorbed by young and impressionable minds every single day. Children not only learn from what we teach them but also from what we fail to explain, supervise, or regulate,” he added.
Online risks
The resolution cited that about 60 percent of Filipino children aged 10 to 17 are active internet and social media users. It added that 97 percent of those aged 16 to 17 have access to social media, making them more vulnerable to online abuse and exploitation.
The PB said government efforts to regulate social media use are necessary to address the harmful effects of excessive internet exposure on young people.
“While restrictions alone are not complete solutions, they represent an important first step toward protecting our youth from the harmful online environment to which they are exposed every day,” Martinez said.
Existing measures
The Department of Education issued an order on June 1 titled Ensuring a Safe and Motivating Learning Environment, which prohibits the use of electronic devices during instructional hours, except for educational and emergency purposes.
Martinez also noted that several measures have been proposed in the Senate to strengthen the protection of children and minors in the digital sphere.
He said education, parental guidance, responsible digital citizenship and sensible regulation should work together to ensure social media becomes a platform for positive engagement rather than a source of harm. / VEEJAY CATADMAN, UP CEBU INTERN
