BACOLOD City – Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. welcomed the passage of a law that seeks the creation of a national identification system.
President Rodrigo Duterte signed on Monday Republic Act 11055, or the Philippine Identification System Act of 2018, which aims to simplify public and private transactions by providing Filipinos and foreign residents a universal identification card.
Marañon said the signing of the law was “long overdue,” adding that it should have been done years ago when the national ID system was first introduced.
Under the new law, all citizens will be provided with a Common Reference Number, which will be contained in an ID card along with essential information such as full name, address, date and place of birth, sex, civil status, signature, date of card issuance, and a recent photo.
Marañon said aside from making government transactions easy, the law will also benefit the government’s anticrime and antiterrorism campaigns.
He added that those who oppose the national ID system are people who have criminal records and ill motives.
“It is good for the Filipinos and the Philippines as the number one problem in the country and the whole world is terrorism,” the governor said.
The application for the new ID shall be free of charge, said the law’s principal author Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon.
A national ID system has already been employed in some neighboring countries.
In Malaysia, the current identity card – known as MyKad – was introduced in 2001./PN
