PSA “certain” to wipe out national ID backlog by first quarter of 2023
The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Thursday announced it is aiming to provide unique Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) numbers to around 75 million registrants by the first quarter of 2023.
During a Laging Handa briefing, officer-in-charge of the PhilSys Registry Office Fred Sollesta said the agency is looking to eliminate the backlog of about 50 million physical cards by next year through the issuance of the unique 12-digit PhilSys number.
“So, by first quarter of 2023 we are certain that we can wipe out that backlog na lahat ng mga nagparehistro ay may unique na PhilSys number na. So kung may unique PhilSys number na, puwede natin na unahin as an option sa ating mga kababayan, as an option sa kanila to issue the ePhilID and ultimately, we will still receive the physical card,” Sollesta said.
He added that the PSA is coordinating with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to further expedite and increase the volume of PhilID production and printing.
A total of 25 million physical PhilID cards have been dispatched, according to Sollesta.
“Ongoing naman iyong talks ng PSA ngayon at BSP, papaano siya ma-increase din, iyong card production para hindi naman gaano na masyadong matagal iyong paghihintay ng ating kababayan,” he said.
He attributes the backlogs to the system being initially choked with millions of registrants.
In a way masabi natin nabubulunan iyong system natin kasi naka-setup na iyong ating IT infrastructure including iyong card printing facility. Pero ngayon humahabol kami dahil mas mataas na talaga iyong production,” he said.
