Who Are You? (Who? Who? Who? Who?): A National ID System, Why Not?

Much has been said by my betters about why a national ID system is a bad thing; however, I've long been convinced that the need for it is long overdue.

I've never been convinced by arguments based on the right to privacy; after all, the right to privacy is absolutely NOT absolute. Then-Justice (now Chief Justice) Reynato Puno's very erudite ponencia in Ople vs. Torres had this:

In no uncertain terms, we also underscore that the right to privacy does not bar all incursions into individual privacy. The right is not intended to stifle scientific and technological advancements that enhance public service and the common good. It merely requires that the law be narrowly focused and a compelling interest justify such intrusions. (emphasis the jester-in-exile's)

(Of course I trust Chief Justice Puno -- time and again, he has proven to be an advocate of human rights and civil and political rights, and for him to say this about the right to privacy is very very persuasive.)

Justice Mendoza's separate opinion even made an illustration that concretized this position in my mind:

In the case of the Identification Reference System, the purpose is to facilitate the transaction of business with service agencies of the government and to prevent fraud and misrepresentation. The personal identification of an individual can facilitate his treatment in any government hospital in case of emergency. On the other hand, the delivery of material assistance, such as free medicines, can be protected from fraud or misrepresentation as the absence of a data base makes it possible for unscrupulous individuals to obtain assistance from more than one government agency.

The case even reminds that NSO, LTO, DFA all require personal information for the documents they issue. That said, I find it very hard indeed for the "right to privacy" argument to hold any water, if the National ID System is established for legitimate purposes.

***
So. The National ID System. Let's try to propose how it's going to be.

Intended Use for National ID System

1. Create database for development and planning purposes, such as:

Census data

Data for resource management

Data for allocation and redistribution of legislative districts

Data for taxation planning

Et cetera.

2. Streamline citizen transactions with government

Single point of entry, multiple functions: with one card, local offices can honor transactions, such as proof of birth for acquisition of a driver's license, renewal of NBI clearances, voter's registration (heck, it would facilitate e-Lections and thus help fight election fraud), and the like.

Ease of government ID renewal/ replacement: with one card, LTO, NBI, DFA, NSO, COMELEC, SSS/ GSIS, BIR, Medicard, PRC and the rest will have facilitated processes for renewal or replacement of loss (I should know how difficult getting replacement IDs is, cripes).

Interdepartmental cross-reference capability: government agencies who need to speak with each other due to the nature of their transactions can establish processes to facilitate that (for instance, DFA and POEA/ OWWA).

3. Prevent identity theft and identity fraud

Here I have a concrete example -- a colleague in the company I used to work for was unable to leave the country for a training, because his brother was able to use his passport. If the DFA and the POEA had cross-reference capability, such identity fraud would not be possible (okay, maybe just minimized, but you get the point).

4. Streamline citizen data for peace and order, anticriminality, and national security purposes

Of course, such processes would begin with the authorities having to get a court order and/or a warrant, but having this system would facilitate the tracking down of a criminal using driver's license number data, SSS data, BJMP data, and so on; some of the crimes that would be solved and fought much more successfully would be parole violation, bank fraud and credit fraud, identity fraud (yes, yes, I saw Catch Me If You Can again lately), espionage (as if we have any secrets of value anyway), and so on.

ID Mechanisms

1. Lead agency - NSO. Obviously.

2. No identification on ID surface beyond photo, signature, and thumbprint (same as a driver's license or one of those Citibank photo credit cards).

3. No form of racial, religious, nor political profiling must be in any and all checklists or application forms. Again, obviously; we don't want this ID to be used for purposes that will violate human rights and civil and political rights.

3. Population Reference Number generation. Okay, this is the engineer in me going to hold court. Note: A refers to alphabetical, # refers to number. Thus:

First sequence: Date block

(A)(##)(##)
A - decade

A - 1901 to 1910
B - 1911 to 1920
C - 1921 to 1930

...

X - 2131 to 2140
Y - 2141 to 2150
Z - 2151 to 2160
A - 2161 to 2170

Note that reset of characters is after more than two and a half centuries; enough time for database purging. (Heck, there isn't any indication that there'll be someone who'll live long enough to reach his letter after the reset -- well, maybe I will, as I don't plan to die hahahaha.)

1st ## - month

01 - January
02 - February

...

12 - December

2nd ## - day

01 - 1st
02 - 2nd

...

31 - 31st

*DASH*

Second sequence: System generated number, to be provided by NSO central

######### - eight-digit system-generated number(up to one hundred million slots available, similar in concept to credit card/ ATM numbers)

*DASH*

Third sequence: Demographic block

(A)(A)(A)(A)

1st A - Region

A - National Capital Region (NCR)
B - Ilocos Region (Region I)
C - Cagayan Valley (Region II)
D - Central Luzon (Region III)
E - CALABARZON (Region IV-A)
F - MIMAROPA (Region IV-B)
G - Bicol Region (Region V)
H - Western Visayas (Region VI)
I - Central Visayas (Region VII)
J - Eastern Visayas (Region VIII)
K - Zamboanga Peninsula (Region IX)
L - Northern Mindanao (Region X)
M - Davao Region (Region XI)
N - SOCCSKSARGEN (Region XII)
O - Caraga (Region XIII)
P - Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR)
Q - Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)
Z - Foreign born/ naturalized citizen

2nd A - Province (in NCR's case, city or municipality)

For CAR:
A - Abra
B - Apayao
c - Benguet
D - Ifugao
E - Kalinga
F - Mountain Province
Z - Foreign born/ naturalized citizen

3rd A - Municipality/ city (in NCR's case, zone or district)

For Benguet:
A - Atok
B - Baguio City
c - Bakun
D - Bokod
E - Buguias
F - Itogon
G - Kabayan
H - Kapangan
I - Kibungan
J - La Trinidad
K - Mankayan
L - Sablan
M - Tuba
N - Tublay
Z - Foreign born/ naturalized citizen

4th A - Gender:

M - male, live birth
F - female, live birth
X - male died in childbirth
Y - female died in childbirth

Examples:

the jester-in-exile (Kafagway kid, born, bred, and raised): H0216 - 26466256 - PCBM

Sitti (born November 29, 1984 in Manila; for purposes of PRN completion let's assume that she was born in Chinese General in Sta. Cruz; it's an assumption, okay, not a fact): I1129 - 28837492 - AFNF

Marian Rivera (born August 12, 1984 in Madrid, Spain): I0812 - 76767827 - ZZZF

GMA's conscience (died in childbirth on April 5, 1947, in Lubao, Pampanga): E0405 - 78826462 - DEHY

4. SIM - to contain data such as:

Driver's license number
Voter's ID number
NBI clearance number
TIN
SSS/ GSIS number
Medicard number
Pag-IBIG number
Passport number
PRC license number
Et cetera

Note: only the PRN appears on card surface, other ID numbers do not; identity theft must be made difficult.

5. Some form of fraud prevention label; some sort of security hologram or similar.

Implementation Procedures and Checkpoints

Year Zero to Year Two

1.a. start registration of citizens; by end of Year Two, 35% of population registered

Year Three to Year Four

1.a. registration of citizens; by end of Year Four, 75% of population registered

Year Five

1.a. registration of citizens; by end of Year Five, 90% of population registered

Year Six

1. system to log all live newborns automatically and assign PRNs set up nationwide
2. 95% of 18 and up already have PRNs
3. 95% of those born within Year Zero and Year Five have PRNs assigned

Interim Activities (interconnection checkpoints)

1. Year Zero to Year Three - full LTO integration
2. Year Zero to Year Three - full DFA integration
3. Year Zero to Year Three - full tin integration
4. Year One to Year Four - full NBI integration
5. Year Two to Year Four - 4 full voter's id number integration
6. Year Three to Year Six - full SSS/GSIS integration
7. Year Three to Year Six - full medicard/pag-ibig integration
8. Year Four to Year Eight - full PRC integration
9. Year Six and onwards - other government offices (OWWA/POEA ID, PhilPost postal ID, BJMP prisoner number, etc); checkpoints set as necessary

Year Ten

1. system to log all live newborns automatically and assign PRNs set up worldwide (to include live births of filipinos abroad, recorded via consulate)
2. 99.9% of 18 and up already have PRNs assigned, with system to assign voter's ID number and TIN automatically upon reaching age of majority
3. 99.99% of 31 and up already have PRNs assigned, with corresponding numbers qualified for already assigned (aside from voter's ID number and TIN; NBI, SSS, passport, PRC, and so on)

Whuf. What a stretch.

***
Anyway, we'll just have to wait and see if this system somehow gets established.

I'm fairly certain it can work out... but not while the Queen is still esconced in Fortress Pasig.



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