Angara confident of DICT bicameral review

Sen. Edgardo Angara on Tuesday voiced confidence a bill creating a Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) will hurdle a bicameral review quickly, now that it has passed third and final reading in the Senate.

 

Angara said the House of Representatives already approved a counterpart measure seeking the reorganization of communications-related agencies under the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) into the DICT.

 

“Of course, the bill still has to go under bicameral review before ultimately getting signed into law by the President. But I am optimistic that the imperative of having a DICT in this information age is clear enough that we will have the necessary legislation in place very soon,” he said.

 

Angara, who chairs the Senate science and technology committee and the Congressional Commission on Science and Technology and Engineering (COMSTE), lauded his colleagues for swiftly enacting a measure "that many of us have been waiting for a long time.”

 

He added many sectors, such as the Information Technology and Business Processing Outsourcing (IT-BPO) industry, have expressed support for the establishment of a DICT.

 

In a position paper submitted to the Senate, the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII) underscored that the new department will help ensure the country’s global competitiveness and attractiveness for foreign investments, particularly during the digital age.

 

He noted that at the beginning of 2011, 158 ICT agencies existed, regulating more than 80 percent of the markets worldwide.  

 

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam have their own Ministries or Departments of ICT.

 

The Philippines is in league with Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar in not having a separate agency focused on ICT development, he added.

 

“Having a DICT in place provides ample opportunity for us to create policies that will transition the country toward a full-fledged technology-driven economy,” he said. — TJD, GMA News