Naga exceeds target in nat’l ID rollout

By Zyra Ponce

Some 1,185 Naguenos have registered for the issuance of national ID on the start of the step two process in the Philippine ID System from February 9-14, 2021, which number is higher by 160 than the 1,026 target registrants, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in Camarines Sur said.

Clemente Manaog, PSA Camarines Sur chief, said they were expecting only 270 registrants on a daily basis, who could be accommodated to meet the target for the second step of the registration process within the next two to three months.

He said that as of Feb. 16, the number of registered city residents represents only four percent of the total 27,000 pre-registered Naguenos belonging to low-income families, who have undergone step one of the registration process.

The step one process was conducted by members of the local PSA teams, who went house-to-house in the 27 barangays of the city starting Oct. 18, 2020 to collect primary information and demographic data.

Manaog said the delay in the continuation of step two proceedings, which includes the biometric data collection such as the fingerprints, iris scan and

picture were primarily caused by the series of typhoons in November and December last year.

He further said that the registration client system, which is used to gather the personal information data of registrants also underwent trial testing in their central office, which added to the delay.

Manaog clarified that registration is still ongoing for the steps one and two. Moreever, he said that all members of the households can pre-register, but only those 5 years old and above can be accompanied by their parents during the step two of the registration process.

Manaog also said that there are 20 working days allotted as waiting period for the issuance of the ID number and the actual ID card.

Republic Act No. 11055, otherwise known as the Philippine Identification System Act aims to establish a single national identification system for all the citizens and resident aliens of the Philippines. The national ID will serve as a valid proof of identity provided by the Philippine System, which shall be a means of simplifying public and private transactions, and shall be a social and economic platform that will promote seamless social service delivery and strengthening of financial inclusion for both public and private services.