ID REGISTRATION. Residents queue up to register for the national ID at the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) registration center in Passi City, Iloilo province on Feb. 23, 2021. PSA 6 (Western Visayas) Director Fred Sollesta said on Friday (April 16, 2021) that almost all of the municipalities in the region’s priority provinces have registration centers that are open from Monday to Saturday. (PNA photo courtesy of PSA Iloilo FB page)
ILOILO CITY – More than 500,000 residents of Western Visayas have already registered for the ongoing Step 2 process of the National ID System.
In a phone interview on Friday, the director of Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) 6 (Western Visayas), Fred Sollesta, said more than 8,000 have registered in Antique and Capiz, between 230,000 and 250,000 in Iloilo, and between 310,000 and 330,000 in Negros Occidental, among the provinces in the region.
Sollesta said registration centers have been set up in almost all municipalities in priority provinces in the region.
In Iloilo City, he said, they have established registration centers at the old office of the Department of Foreign Affairs in Yulo Drive, Iloilo Science and Technology University in La Paz district, and barangays Calaparan, San Rafael, and Katilingban.
Two centers have also been set up at the City Mall’s Ungka, Pavia, and Tagbak, Jaro branches.
At times, however, local government units (LGUs) had to suspend the registration due to rising cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) in their areas, Sollesta said.
Step 2 is the process where the registrant’s demographic information is validated and biometric identities, such as fingerprint, iris, and front-face photograph, are captured.
Registration centers are open from Monday to Saturday and will prioritize those with an appointment from targeted barangays.
However, if there is still time, they can accommodate walk-in registrants, regardless of their residence.
Sollesta said they were done with the pre-registration on March 31, recording more or less a million individuals, exceeding their target of 800,000.
Preparations, he said, were ongoing for the online registration, which is expected to be launched in May.
Through online registration, applicants can input their demographic information and set an appointment for Step 2.
“It can cater to those with access to the Internet. So I think it is very doable in the region,” he said.
The national ID will be printed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and will be delivered to the preferred mailing address of the registrant or the registration center.
“I know that they would appreciate the many benefits of the national ID that will fast-track the transaction in government agencies, including private institutions. It will lessen the need for documentary requirements to establish the identity of the individual,” Sollesta said.
Signed into law by President Rodrigo R. Duterte in August 2018, Republic Act 11055, or the Philippine Identification System Act, aims to establish a single national ID for all Filipinos and resident aliens.
The national ID shall be a valid proof of identity that shall be a means of simplifying public and private transactions, enrollment in schools, and opening of bank accounts.
It will also boost efficiency, especially in dealing with government services where people will only need to present one ID during transactions. (PNA)
