Senate to pass national ID system by 2018

Sen. Panfilo Lacson INQUIRER.net file photo

The Senate will likely approve a simpler and incentive-based national identification system instead of the security-based proposal passed by the House of Representatives, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said on Monday.

Lacson heads the Senate justice subcommittee that began deliberating on 10 Senate bills seeking the establishment of a national ID system in the country.

After a two-hour hearing, Lacson said the bill that was shaping up was that the national ID should only be required of Filipinos aged 18 and above and should only contain basic information about a person — his full name, birthdate, birthplace, age and sex.

In contrast, House Bill No. 6221 which was passed in September required more sensitive data fields, such as marital status of one’s parents and the filiation of one’s children.

In requiring only basic information like most other countries, Lacson said the idea was to make it easier for people to access government services with a national ID.

“Let’s make it easy for Filipinos to transact business with government and private institutions instead of emphasizing security considerations,” Lacson said.

Lacson said he agreed with Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon that a national ID should be “incentive-based” rather than “security-based.”

At the hearing, Drilon said people would voluntarily get such an ID if its convenience was made evident.

“You have a national ID, you have access to the LTO (Land Transportation Office), voter’s ID, Social Security System, Government Service Insurance System. You will encourage people to register in the Civil Registry,” Drilon said.

Civil Registrar General and National Statistician Lisa Grace Bersales agreed and said the national ID system would be implemented “with privacy and confidentiality in mind.”

“Each Filipino will have a legal identity to access government services in a faster and easier manner,” Bersales told reporters.

Lacson said he was committed to pushing the approval of the incipient National Identification System Act within the first quarter of 2018, but full implementation might take longer.

Lacson noted that Indonesia took five years to implement their national ID system.