Nat’l ID System to help secure communities: DND

Andolong said the measure will allow the government to discern with accuracy the identities of individuals residing in a particular community. (File Photo: PTV/Website)

MANILA — The Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) or the National ID System will greatly improve the country’s security, Department of National Defense (DND) spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said Tuesday.

Andolong said the measure will allow the government to discern with accuracy the identities of individuals residing in a particular community.

“Once the system is in place, we will be able to ascertain the identities of individuals who are in our communities and discern between Filipinos and aliens, and terrorists and law-abiding citizens. This will enable us to better secure our nation and people,” he said in a message to the Philippine News Agency.

With these benefits, Andolong said the DND and the Armed Forces of the Philippines strongly support this measure.

Earlier, DND Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the National ID System will greatly help in disaster relief efforts.

“For example, as a country prone to disasters, the system will allow improved distribution of aide to legitimate disaster victims. Matters such as this can now be better addressed because of the new law,” he added.

Also, the DND chief said the National ID System will help the government address the gaps in the identification of citizens entitled to receive government services, thereby making things more convenient for law-abiding Filipinos.

On Aug. 6, 2018, President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed Republic Act 11055 creating PhilSys, which would serve as a single official identification card for all citizens and resident aliens of the Philippines.

Under the law, the National ID shall contain a person’s PhilSys number, full name, gender, blood type, place of birth, date of birth, marital status (optional), mobile number (optional), address, front-facing photo, full set of fingerprints and iris scan.

Duterte earlier said the PhilSys would boost his administration’s drive against “social menaces of poverty, corruption, and criminal issues, as well as terrorism and violent extremism”. Pilot testing for the national ID would be from September to December 2019, when a substantial number of Filipinos nationwide would be registered.