Rep Duterte echoes PBBM's call to speed up release of national ID cards
Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo Duterte has echoed the call of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. for the ramped up implementation of the national identification (ID) card, also known as the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys).

“Accelerating the implementation of the national ID system will make the delivery of financial assistance swift and efficient," Rep. Duterte said in a statement Thursday, July 14.
"Aside from that, a well-maintained national ID system will help the government clean up its database of beneficiaries of social protection programs, such as the 4Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program). Even those who dupe the system by getting senior citizen ID cards even though they are not yet qualified to avail of the benefits for seniors will be weeded out,” explained the second-term solon.
Former President Rodrigo Duterte--Rep. Duterte's father--signed into law Republic Act (RA) 11055 or the Philsys Act on August 2018.
In February 2022, the elder Duterte issued Executive Order (EO) No.162 mandating the use of the Philippine Identification (PhilID) card in its printed or electronic form as sufficient proof of identity and age in all government and private transactions.
Late last month, then-President-elect Marcos commented that the issuance of national ID cards was "lacking", and that the release of the cards must be stepped up.
Rep. Duterte called on the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to find ways to accelerate the implementation of Philsys.
The PSA is the chief implementer of the Philsys project, while the BSP is in charge of producing the physical ID cards, which will then be turned over to the Philippine Postal Corporation (PhilPost) for delivery.
“We urge the BSP and PSA to come up with a good catch-up plan to speed up the implementation of this vital project,” the congressman said, adding that the national ID will help weed out “false” beneficiaries from social protection programs, thus assisting the government in better targeting those who need financial aid the most during times of crisis.
A 2021 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) on the BSP revealed that the BSP and its contractor tasked to deliver the physical Philsys cards were unable to meet their production targets, causing delays in the project.