The Konektadong Pinoy Act: A Law That Disconnects

A nation is not connected by cables alone, but by the fairness of who gets to plug in.

Konektadong Pinoy or Disconnected FDIs?

That is the unanswered question of the Konektadong Pinoy Act — a law that, while promising inclusivity, may in fact be the biggest disincentive to foreign direct investment in our digital sector.

The irony is hard to miss. At a time when the Philippines desperately needs foreign capital — scraping barely $500 million in the first half of the year, a fraction of what our ASEAN neighbors attract — we pass a law that signals instability.

Instead of welcoming investment with clarity and consistency, we are changing the rules of the game midstream.

Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Henry Aguda may not fully realize the chilling effect the Konektadong Pinoy Act creates.

On the surface, the law appears noble: universal access to digital connectivity. But scratch beneath, and the contradictions emerge. Legacy telcos — those who have invested heavily in infrastructure and compliance — are suddenly disenfranchised.

Meanwhile, new entrants enjoy a two-year grace period before rolling out cybersecurity measures.

The result? An uneven playing field that punishes long-term investors while incentivizing short-term opportunists.

Foreign investors are not blind. They see the paradox of a country claiming openness while carving out distortions in the market.

They understand what “moving goalposts” mean — that billions they might pour into the sector could vanish overnight under shifting regulations. What message does this send?

That the Philippines cannot guarantee investment stability.

That the KP Act’s promise of inclusion masks a deeper risk: a regulatory environment that rewards the untested and penalizes the committed.

If this logic persists, we will see only trifling investments — small bets by players hedging against uncertainty, not the large-scale capital needed to modernize infrastructure, secure networks, and truly bridge the digital divide.

The biggest losers? Filipino consumers. Rural barangays will continue to wait for reliable access. MSMEs will be left hanging between slow connectivity and fragile cybersecurity.

And the country will remain stuck in a cycle of consumer-driven GDP bumps, without the backbone of sustained, investment-led growth.

Connectivity is not just about speed or access; it is about trust. Trust that the rules won’t change midstream. Trust that regulators understand the balance between innovation and stability.

Trust that universal access will not come at the expense of security and investor confidence.

As it stands, the Konektadong Pinoy Act undermines that trust. It confuses disruption with development. It mistakes the rhetoric of inclusion for the reality of uneven competition.

And it risks sending foreign capital elsewhere at the very moment we need it most.

If the Philippines is serious about attracting investment, we cannot afford laws that mistake instability for progress. Connectivity cannot be built on shifting sand. The Konektadong Pinoy Act, as written, is less a bridge than a warning sign: proceed at your own risk.