IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

More than 150,000 voters in the Ilocos Region may not be able to vote next year unless they undergo biometric registration in October, poll officials said yesterday.

Commission on Elections (Comelec) assistant regional director Reddy Balarbar said among the provinces with a large number of voters without biometric data were Pangasinan with 95,742; La Union, 20,922; Ilocos Sur, 13,167, and Ilocos Norte, 26,363.

Balarbar said the number is based on data submitted during the election registration board hearing in July, which result was released in August.

A satellite-based e-health platform was installed in the rural hospital of German Doctors for Developing Countries in Buda, Marilog District, Davao City.

Launched last Friday in a press briefing at the Seda-Abreeza Hotel, the e-health solution dubbed as Satmed was made possible by SES, a Luxembourg-based satellite operator in partnership with the Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.

But this time, the NBN will have a new name--the Government Broadband Network (GBN), Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Mario Montejo told Sun.Star late last month.

Montejo also confirmed that the Aquino administration has expressed interest in connecting government offices through high-speed broadband Internet.

Ffee public Wi-Fi has been installed in 50 of the 80 barangays in Cebu City, enabling city residents to access government services and information.

This, after the Cebu City Goverment partnered with private telecommunications company PLDT to roll out free public Wi-Fi services in the 80 barangays across the city.

Biometrics refer to voter’s photograph, fingerprints, and signature digitally taken using the data capture machine (DCM) at the municipal and city Commission on Elections (Comelec) offices.

“Based on records, we have around 67,000 registrants without biometrics; of these, 30,000 are from General Santos City,” Atty. Gerada said.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has advised the registered voters in Zamboanga del Sur to validate their data with the election office immediately as the deadline for validation and registration nears.

The deadline for the validation and registration of voters is on October 31 this year.

Zamboanga del Sur election supervisor Jossil Macute said that 38,440, which represents 7.17 percent of the total 496,180 registered voters in the province, do not have biometrics.

Jimenez said most of these voters, who had registered in 2004, should visit election offices for the recording of their biometrics data consisting of the registrant's picture and computer-recorded fingerprint and signature.

Bohol election officer and lawyer Eliso Labaria issued this alarm as the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to re-open its continuing registration for new voters and revalidation or reactivation of old voters starting May 6, 2014 to October 31, 2015.

But according to the Comelec officer, I have no use for it since my picture was already printed beside my name in the voters’ list.

I didn’t have to bring out any of my ID cards from my wallet that was bulging, not with a wad of money, but with SSS, GSIS, driver’s license, S and R, SM Advantage, senior citizen’s, and company ID cards.

Aboitiz InfraCapital’s LIMA Estate, the leading smart and sustainable industrial-anchored estate in Asia, has clinched the Smart City Award at the inaugural ESGBusiness Awards, held at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. This accolade recognizes LIMA Estate’s efforts in seamlessly integrating innovation with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles into its smart city initiatives—driven by a strong commitment to transform Lipa-Malvar, Batangas into a thriving, next-generation economic hub.

Through strategic partnerships with global urban infrastructure experts and Aboitiz Data Innovation, LIMA Estate has successfully implemented a comprehensive suite of smart city features, that focuses on enhancing the liveability, resilience, and sustainability of its community.

PRC Finance and Administrative Division chief Juanita Domogen said they will launch this month a regionalized identification printing system that would only take four hours to produce an identification card.

The region has been chosen as a pilot area for the implementation of this project, she added.

Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go is calling for the swifter digital transformation of government agencies so Filipinos may find it easier to access various basic government services online. The senator said that the COVID-19 crisis continues to highlight the need to invest in technology and promote E-governance practices to improve efficiency in the delivery of public goods and services.

“Gamit ang teknolohiya, dapat maging mas mabilis, maayos, maaasahan at komprehensibo ang serbisyong ibinibigay ng gobyerno sa tao. Lalo na sa panahon ngayon, magmalasakit tayo at pagaanin ang hirap na pinapasan ng ating mga kababayan,” he explained.

For the modern urban dweller, 15 minutes is a lot of time.

A lot of productive things can be done – a high-intensity, interval training (HITT) workout or run a 1.5-kilometer route, clearing your emails, meditating, catching up on the news, or preparing a quick smoothie – all within 15 minutes.

But for the Metro Manila commuter, 15 minutes is barely enough to get from point A to point B. During rush hour, it is most likely that within this time, you still haven’t moved an inch.

Senator Edgardo J. Angara, chair of the Senate Committee on Science and Technology, underscored the importance of having a stand-alone agency focused on the development of this sector.

“ICT is perhaps the most powerful technology in the world right now, making it vital in a developing nation like the Philippines,” said Angara.

The representatives from the three local government units (LGUs) received the recognition at the conclusion of an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Innovations Forum in the business district of the country, Makati City.

This was raised last Monday at the Department of Trade Industry (DTI) Strategic Conversations on E-Commerce forum that aims to serve as a venue to create a roadmap for e-commerce developments in the Philippines.

The PRC has launched its online application system to enable applicants for the various PRC licensure examinations to file their applications online.

The PRC, an attached agency of the DoLE, aims to provide faster and more accessible services to its clients through its e-services programs, one component of which is the online application system.

The Executive Order, reorganizing the agency into the Information and Communications Technology Office (ICTO) was issued June 23, just two days after the appointment of Oliver Chato as CICT Commissioner.

EO 47 transferred the ICTO to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). Its new head will be an executive director with the rank of undersecretary.

President Benigno S. C. Aquino III yesterday thumbed down a proposed measure creating a Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT).

“I’m not sure that there is a need for a department specifically for IT (information technology), currently the ICTO (ICT Office) seems to adequately meet all of the challenges with regards to IT... security, speed, connectivity and so on,” Mr. Aquino said in an interview with Philippine Daily Inquirer aired live via government-owned PTV-4.

Col. Dante Costez, commander of the Army Signal Regiment (ASR), said the new ID system features state-of-the-art technology that encompasses computers, servers, network infrastructure,nd information system that will be controlled and overseen wholly by military personnel.

The ASR, spearheaded by Costez, formulated and designed the new ID system to alleviate the problems presented by the previous ID system.