Duterte registers for national ID

President Rodrigo Duterte has registered himself for the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys), official photos from Malacañang showed.

Duterte, as seen in pictures sent to reporters late Thursday, had his biometric information taken by Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) personnel for the national ID system, which is hoped to boost delivery of public services and reduce bureaucratic red tape.

Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea and Duterte’s long-time aide Senator Christopher “Bong” Go were also photographed having themselves registered into the PhilSys.

In 2018, the President signed into law the PhilSys Act or Republic Act 11055 that mandated the government to create a single identification card for Filipino citizens and foreign residents through the collection of basic personal information and biometric data.

The government aims to provide national IDs to about 92 million Filipinos by the end of June 2022.

The pre-registration process for the national ID system began last October, covering around five million Filipinos from 32 provinces.

Last month, Duterte approved the P3.52-billion additional budget for the implementation of the national ID system this year.

The funds will be utilized to register 20 million more individuals to the PhilSys this year, apart from the 50-million target.

Last April, Duterte said the national ID could have sped up the distribution of cash assistance to poor families under the national government’s social amelioration program amid the pandemic, which was marred with delays due to concerns on lists of beneficiaries, among other logistical challenges.

The PSA, which is mandated to lead the PhilSys, earlier said registration of all households will start this month through the help of local government units and partner agencies.