Lacson says full utilization of Nat'l ID will help boost economic recovery

Full implementation of the Philippine Identification System (National ID) Act will speed up the country's economic recovery as it will promote financial inclusion, Sen. Panfilo M. Lacson said Saturday.

In a statement, Lacson, one of the authors and the principal sponsor of the measure in the Senate, pointed out that the 9.5-percent economic contraction in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the need for financial inclusion of Filipinos, and ease in availing government services.

"National ID system will promote financial inclusion and streamline government services," he said.

"The lack of identification creates formidable barriers for the downtrodden and the poor, and creates even larger barriers between the government and the people. Hence, we should push for the implementation of the National ID if we want to further strengthen our response not only against the pandemic, particularly in the roll-out of the much-awaited vaccines, but in many of our future endeavors," the statement quoted the senator as saying during the third annual economic and political briefing of the Colegio de San Juan de Letran Graduate School.

Likewise, he pointed out that National ID system can facilitate a successful vaccine rollout which will lead to herd immunity --a key factor in easing lockdowns.

"Once we have that herd immunity, where about 75 to 80 percent of the population are vaccinated, we can move around, go on and resume our economic activities," he said.

He also noted that the delay in the disbursement of stimulus funds such as subsidies from the Social Amelioration Programs (SAPs) gravely hurt the economy, he said.

Meanwhile, Lacson assured the public that the National ID measure,  which became law as early as August 2018, will contain only basic data and will not intrude on people's privacy.

"The National Economic and Development Authority and the Philippine Statistics Authority are continuously trying to innovate to ensure the security of the implementation of the National ID system," he added. —LBG, GMA News