Manila, March 30 -- Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Monday, March 30 renewed his push for the government to consider banning social media use for minors, following Indonesia's implementation of a new government regulation prohibiting children younger than 16 from accessing digital platforms.

Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate finance panel, made the call for a similar prohibition in the Philippines noting the negative impact of online platforms in minors' decision-making and behavior.

So far, Indonesia is the first country in Southeast Asia to enforce a social media ban for minors, where in children below 16 will be prohibited from creating accounts on platforms deemed "high-risk."

These include Tiktok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, X an...