Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go reiterated the call for the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) to implement the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) to prevent misrepresentations and other fraudulent transactions.
“The national ID system is long overdue. The ongoing pandemic exposed many gaps in the delivery of various services. One example is the Social Amelioration Program (SAP), which initially encountered distribution challenges. The discrepancy in some data would have been minimized if we had the national ID system fully functional,” said Senator Go.
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Reports from the Philippine News Agency further that PhilSys would improve efficiency, transparency, and responsiveness in future deliveries of essential government services.
Earlier, Duterte expressed disappointment over the two-year delay in the full implementation of Republic Act 11055, which he said could have facilitated the swift distribution of financial aid under the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.
In April, the President directed the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) to hasten the implementation of PhilSys. The need for government to transition to e-governance was among the issues emphasized by Duterte in his 5th and penultimate State of the Nation Address (SONA) last July 25.
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Senator Go said the full implementation of the national ID system would also be an integral component if the country is to fully realize the benefits of e-governance – faster, more efficient, more cost-effective public service delivery that is more responsive to the needs of our people.
“The growing sophistication of emerging technologies and new trends in processing data can provide solutions to improve public service delivery, enhance good governance and reduce corruption and red tape,” said Senator Go.
