‘EO must fix DICT-NSA pact for IDs’

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. should issue an executive order that would transfer to the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) certain functions of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) to expedite the issuance of national identity card of Filipinos under the 2018 Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) law, the Department of Justice said.

“To fully realize the objectives of the PhilSys Act, there is a necessity to reorganize the Executive Department, by transferring some of the functions of the PSA under the PhilSys Act to the DICT, for purposes of rolling-out the digital PhilSys ID,” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla said in a DOJ legal opinion.

“To do this, the corresponding Executive Order must be issued providing for the same, specifically directing the PSA to grant DICT access to the data needed for producing digital PhilSys IDs,” he added.

The DOJ chief noted that during a sectoral meeting last April 25, “the President expressed his utmost desire to expedite the roll-out of the PhilSys ID considering that the law remains not fully implemented despite its enactment five (5) years ago.”

“Thus, the DICT and the PSA were instructed to accelerate the roll-out of the digital PhilSys ID,” he said.

According to him, the President’s directive “is in accordance with Section 17, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution, which provides that the President shall have control of all the executive departments, bureaus and offices.”

He stressed that the constitutional mandate “gives the President the con- tinuing authority to reorganize the Executive branch.”

“Jurisprudence has likewise recognized this continuing power of the President to reorganize the offices and agencies in the executive department in line with the President’s constitutionally granted power of control over executive offices,” said Remulla, who cited some of Supreme Court rulings related to the issue.

Executive Secretary Lucas P. Bersamin sought Remulla’s opinion when he asked for the Justice chief’s position on the collaboration of the PSA and the DICT to accelerate the roll-out of the PhilSys IDs.

Rey E. Requejo

PNP: No directive to red-tag PAO lawyer in CARAGA

THE Philippine National Police has denied red-tagging the Public Attorney’s Office for extending aid to suspected rebels.

PNP Chief Gen. Benjamin Acorda Jr., in a letter, told lawyer Ingrid Trixia Rullon-Nastor of PAO’s CARAGA Regional Office 13 in Butuan City that “the PNP did not issue any directive to conduct profiling on personalities providing support to communist terrorist groups, more so on PAO lawyers.”

“The organization recognizes the unequaled contribution of PAO in guaranteeing justice in the society, an endeavor that the PNP shares,” Acorda said.

He responded to Rullon-Nastor’s communication complaining that Col. Dennis Siruno, Surigao del Sur provincial director, issued a memorandum on March 29 directing the Lianga police to profile “legal personalities providing litigation to communist terrorist group cases.”

Cited in the order was Carol Anne General of PAO.

“Unfortunately, one of the lawyers of PAO was subjected to profiling,” the PNP chief lamented. Rio N. Araja