73% of Filipinos back National ID system — SWS

Among the survey respondents, 73 percent of them said they approved, while 18 percent said they disapproved of the Philippine Identification Systems (PhilSys). (Photo: Ginno Alcantara/Philippine Canadian Inquirer)

Majority of Filipinos said they support a national identification (ID) system, the latest survey of Social Weather Stations (SWS) revealed on Tuesday, August 7.

The Second Quarter 2018 Social Weather Survey, done from June 27-30 this year, asked 1,200 Filipino adults: “Sa pangkalahatan, sumasang-ayon po ba kayo o hindi sumasang- ayon sa pagkakaroon National ID system sa Pilipinas (In general, do you approve or disapprove of having a National ID system in the Philippines)?”

Among the survey respondents, 73 percent of them said they approved, while 18 percent said they disapproved of the Philippine Identification Systems (PhilSys).

The remaining nine percent, meanwhile, answered that they did not have enough knowledge to give an opinion about it.

According to the SWS, this led to a net approval score of +55, which is classified as “extremely strong.”

The survey also showed that out of five Filipinos, three of them said the national ID system would be a big help to them.

Asked “Sa inyong palagay, gaano ang maitutulong sa inyo ng national ID system (In your opinion, how much help will the National ID system be to you)?” 32 percent said it will be a “very big help,” 28 percent answered it will be a “big help,” 26 percent said it will be of “moderate help,” and eight percent believed it will be of “little help.”

Only five percent of the respondents said the national ID system will be of “almost no help” at all.

Trust to gov’t

The same survey also said 61 percent of Filipinos believed that the government can be trusted to protect private information in the national ID.

Eight percent, however, said the government cannot be trusted, while 30 percent remained undecided about the matter.

The SWS noted that this gave a net agreement rating of +53, classified as “extremely strong.”

The pollster also found out that 49 percent of the participants have “much trust” that the government would not use the national ID against their opponents, while 13 percent have “little trust” regarding this matter.

The other 39 percent, it said, were undecided.

Support in all areas

It was Metro Manila which gave the highest net approval of having a national ID system in the Philippines, which is at an “extremely strong” +60.

It was followed by Balance Luzon which gave an “extremely strong” +58, Visayas at an “extremely strong” +53, and Mindanao at a “very strong” +48.

The SWS also revealed that the net approval of the said system was “extremely strong” in both urban and rural areas at +58 and +53, respectively.

The June 2018 Social Weather Survey used face-to-face interviews of its participants aged 18 years old and above nationwide. It has sampling error margins of plus or minus three percent for national percentages and plus or minus six percent each for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

The latest survey came after President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law on August 6 the PhilSys Act which mandates the government to create a single official ID for all citizens and foreign residents in the country.