Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro on Thursday expressed full support for the new Department of Transportation (DOTr) chief Vince Dizon in regards to the administration’s push to digitize 95 percent of government transactions.

According to Castro, it is important to give the newly appointed DOTr secretary the opportunity to thoroughly study the challenges and opportunities in implementing these digital initiatives.

“We should give him the chance to study this, as he said, we need to perfect our expressway system. Once he has studied it, he can provide a report on the cashless expressway payment, and we will understand his point,” she said. 

In 2023, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said he wanted government transactions to be conducted digitally to provide accessible and efficient public services to meet evolving demands. 

She also shared the same sentiment regarding the Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) Modernization Program.

She acknowledged that there are numerous stakeholders involved and that Secretary Dizon would need to engage with them to understand where negotiations could be made. 

“He does not dismiss the fact that PUV modernization is truly necessary. Let us give him the proper time to study this,” she said.