President Rodrigo Roa Duterte gives the thumbs up after checking one of the printed national Identification cards following his submission in the registration process for the National Identification System administered by the Philippine Statistics Authority at the Malacañang Palace on January 21, 2021. The national ID system was signed into law by President Duterte in August 2018. Republic Act 11055 or the Philippine Identification System Act, aims to establish a single national ID for all Filipinos and resident aliens. ROBINSON NIÑAL/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO
President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday urged Filipinos to give the Philippine National ID System (PhilSys) a chance, saying it would make their lives “more convenient.”
Duterte signed into law Republic Act No. 11055, or the PhilSys Act, in August 2018.
It sought to establish a single national identification system for all citizens and resident aliens of the Philippines and make the delivery of public and social services more efficient and transparent.
It was also intended to “reduce corruption and curtail bureaucratic red tape” to avert fraudulent transactions and to promote ease of doing business.
“As we pursue this long overdue project, I ask every Filipino to give PhilSys a chance so that we may maximize the advantages of a universal and secure database that will make transactions more efficient and our lives more convenient,” Duterte said in a recorded address.
“Let me assure everyone as well as apart from its primary purpose of providing a resilient digital identification system for all Filipinos, PhilSys will also uphold the privacy of all personal information,” he added.
An individual’s demographic data, including full name, sex, date and place of birth, blood type and address and biometric information including a front facing photograph, full set of fingerprints and an iris scan will be printed on the PhilSys ID.
Duterte registered for PhilSys in January.
The Philippine Statistics Authority is mandated to lead the PhilSys, with support from a policy and coordination board composed of the National Economic and Development Authority and other government agencies. John Ezekiel J. Hirro