PSA told to address PhilSys registration woes

CEBU, Philippines —  The Cebu City Council has requested the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) to resolve the issues in the online registration for the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys).

This, after applicants complained of difficulty in accessing the website’s options or processes.

Councilor Raul Alcoseba, who sponsored a resolution regarding the matter which was approved by the City Council, said the website initially asks for the applicant’s mobile number or email address for it to send a One Time Pin (OTP) for verification and limits the verification up to five minutes within which to input the OTP. However, some applicants received the OTP pass the five-minute limit.

Eventually, when the verification is successful, the applicant will be made to fill out an online form with his/her personal details.

Alcoseba, however, said many times after submitting the details, a notice of error occurs, making the process back to square one.

He added that sometimes error occurs where no more slots are available or booking cannot be done upon reaching the option of choosing the available venue, date, and time for the second step of the registration.

“Some suggest to do the online registration during the wee hours of early morning considering that not many are accessing the website, however this representation suggests that the aforesaid issues should be addressed by the PSA as soon as possible to facilitate the implementation of the Philippine Identification System which is very much necessary especially during a time of crisis,” said Alcoseba.

PhilSys is the government’s central identification platform for all citizens and resident aliens of the Philippines.

An individual’s record in the PhilSys shall be considered as an official and sufficient proof of identity. — KQD (FREEMAN)