DAVAO City 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte has called on the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to find ways to accelerate the implementation of the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) project to further reduce red tape and hasten the delivery of basic services and financial aid to poor families.

The Philsys or national ID system will also complement the e-governance bill re-filed in the incoming 19th Congress  that seeks to shift government transactions online, Duterte said.

Duterte added the national ID will  help weed out “false” beneficiaries from  social protection programs, thus assisting the government in  better targeting those who need financial aid the most during times of crisis.

He recalled that under the administration of  his father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, substantial funding releases were approved to fast-track the implementation of Philsys.

However, a  2021 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) on the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) revealed that the BSP  and its contractor  tasked to deliver  the physical Philsys cards were unable to meet their production targets, causing delays in the project.

“Accelerating the implementation of the national ID system will  make the delivery of financial assistance swift and efficient. Aside from that,  a well-maintained national ID system  will help the government clean up its database of beneficiaries of social protection programs, such as the 4Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program).  Even those who dupe the system by getting senior citizen ID cards even though they are not yet qualified to avail of the benefits for seniors will be weeded out,” Duterte said.

The PSA is the chief implementor of the Philsys project, while the BSP is in charge of  producing the physical ID cards, which will then be turned over to the Philippine Postal Corporation (PhilPost) for delivery.

“We urge the BSP and PSA to come up with a good catch-up plan to speed up the implementation of this vital project,”  Duterte  said.

Duterte issued the call following complaints over the delays in the production and  distribution  of the physical Philsys cards, with many already waiting for more than six months to have these delivered.

According to reports, the PSA  has already registered 74 percent or 68.3 million national ID applicants out of its 92 million target as of June 30. Out of this number, only  13.86 million physical cards have been delivered.

Duterte said a PSA plan to issue printable versions of the national ID  with a corresponding mobile ID that  can  be accessed through the Philsys  app  could be a step in fast-tracking the full  implementation of the project.

He, however, said that the PSA should continue printing the physical ID cards, considering that under the 2022 national budget,  P4.84 billion has been appropriated for the Philsys project.

Under the 2022 General Appropriations Act (GAA), the PSA “shall set a timetable to fully establish and implement the system, which shall not be later than December 31, 2024.”

Former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed into law Republic Act 11055 or the Philsys Act on August 2018.

In February 2022, Mr. Duterte issued Executive Order (EO) No. 162 mandating the use of the Philippine Identification  (PhilID) card in its printed or electronic form as sufficient proof of identity and age in all government and private transactions. The EO states that the PhilID and its corresponding Philsys Number (PSN) shall be honored in all transactions that require proof of identity without the need to present other identification documents, “unless otherwise provided by law.”