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BSP Gov. Diokno inspects printing machines for National IDs

The government is all set for the rollout of the national ID system as Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno inspected on Wednesday the machines which will be used for printing the ID cards.

“Today (Oct. 7th), I inspected the offset printing, card body punching, and collating machines that will be used to print the National ID. BSP has been tasked to print the ID cards,” Diokno said in a Twitter post.

“With this National ID, it would be easier to comply with the stringent Know-your client (KYC) requirement of banks—a usual roadblock to access financial services. With it, it would be easier for Filipinos to open a bank account,” the BSP chief said.

The central bank earlier said the government will spend P30 for every national ID card or a total of P3.4 billion for 116 million Filipinos.

The ID card is set to contain the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) number of each individual, his or her full name, facial image, sex, date of birth, blood type, and address. 

It will also contain biometric information such as iris scan, fingerprints, and photograph.

The Philippine Statistics Authority said the registration for the Step 1 of the national ID system will begin on October 12

“The registration Step 1, to capture the 10 demographic information of the registrants, will start on 12 October 2020,” PSA chief and National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa said.

The Step 2 or the capturing of biometric information will begin on November 25.

The PSA is targeting nine million Filipinos from low income households to complete Step 1 and out of this, about five million Filipinos will complete the registration process in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to the PSA chief.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) identified the priority provinces for the rollout of the national ID or PhilSys.

The PSA earlier said the public can choose whether or not to apply for a national ID although having one is encouraged.

“It [national ID] would also facilitate the distribution of welfare grants to individuals should the need arises,” Diokno said. —Ted Cordero/KG, GMA News