Duterte gets national ID

MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte has received his PhilID, the national identification card under the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys).

Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua handed over the PhilID to Duterte at Malacañan Palace on Wednesday, based on the photo released by the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) on Thursday.

“President Rodrigo Duterte receives his government-issued identification card from National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Acting Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua at the Malacañan Palace on March 3, 2021,” the PCOO’s caption read.

On January 21, Duterte registered himself on the PhilSys and gave his biometric information to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) for the PhilID.

Republic Act (RA) 11055 or the PhilSys Act mandates the issuance of a national ID that will serve as a valid proof of identity for all Filipino citizens and resident aliens.

The PhilID collates the ID holder’s full name, sex, date, and place of birth, blood type, and address.

It will indicate if a person is a Filipino or a resident alien and will also contain the holder’s front-facing photo, full set of fingerprints, and an iris scan.

The PhilID, which will be given for free, will eventually replace all other government-issued IDs, except the passport, driver’s license, and UMID ID.

The disclosure of one’s marital status, mobile number, and electronic mail address is optional.

The PhilSys Act designates PSA, which is under NEDA, as the implementing agency responsible for the overall planning, management, and administration of PhilSys, the government’s central platform for all citizen and resident aliens of the Philippines.

The PSA on January 18 opened the registration process for the PhilSys project to the public.

The government’s target is to have 50 million registrants by the end of 2021.

Signed into law by the President in August 2018, RA 11055 or the Philippine Identification System Act, aims to establish a single national ID for Filipinos and resident aliens.

The national ID shall be a valid proof of identity and a means of simplifying public and private transactions, enrollment in schools, and opening of bank accounts.

It will also boost efficiency, especially in dealing with government services where people will only need to present one ID during transactions.