House bill seeks ID system, ID cards for poor

MANILA, Philippines — A party list lawmaker has called for the establishment of an indigency identification (ID) system and the issuance of ID cards to make it easier for poor Filipinos to avail themselves of social services.

Pinuno party list Rep. Ivan Howard Guintu’s House Bill No. 10997, or the proposed Indigency Identification System Act of 2024, cited instances in which certificates of indigency were supposedly withheld by local governments due to partisanship.

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According to Guintu, his draft measure seeks to “provide an alternative option of proving one’s indigency” through establishing an indigency registration system and issuing an indigency ID card valid for two years.

These will bear the picture, name, birth date, gender, date of issue, and signature of the holder, as well as the serial number issued by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

The cards would be honored in all government transactions, including applications for government social services, passports and driver’s licenses, social and health insurance, as well as court and police clearance. —Jeannette I. Andrade