14 million Filipinos have received national IDs, says PSA

Around 14 million national identification (ID) cards have been delivered nationwide as of July 8, 2022, the Philippine Statistics Office (PSA) said on Thursday.

According to Maki Pulido’s report on “24 Oras,” data from the PSA shows that a  69,687,836 Filipinos have registered for the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys). Of this number, 13,994,382 have received their ID cards.

The PSA did not specify how many cards have been printed, but said that it is now coordinating with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to expedite the printing process. It also apologized for the delay and said it will issue digital copies of the IDs this year while the deliveries are ongoing.

“We seek the patience and understanding of the public as we continue to ensure that PhilID printing and delivery are continuous,” the PSA said in a statement.

The Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost)—the agency tasked to deliver the IDs—meanwhile said it had already delivered 94 percent or 14,360,515 ID cards as of July 15, 2022. Another 384,496 IDs, meanwhile, are currently being transported.

"Tuloy-tuloy ang trabaho namin kahit Sabado’t Linggo, dine-deliver namin ‘yan…priority namin na ma-i-deliver ‘yan," Postmaster General Norman Fulgencio said.

(Our work continues even during weekends. It is our priority to deliver all the IDs.)

According to PHLPost, the only complication would be if the registrant puts in the wrong address or fails to provide their mobile number.

“Sa illegal settlers ang ginagamit po nila ay isang number lang. Ang challenge ng kartero dyan, instead of looking for the house ang hinahanap nila ay yung tao mismo,” Quezon City Postmaster Cecilia Tabares said.

(Illegal settlers use only one number. So the challenge for our mailman is to look for the registrants instead of their houses.) — Sundy Locus/BM, GMA News