Registration for the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) here has resumed after it was suspended on May 26 in compliance with quarantine restrictions.

Registrants have been trooping to SM Ecoland here since October 11 and at the cinema lobby on the second floor of SM Lanang Premier since October 13.

Only applicants with appointments for the Philippine Identification (PhilID) card will be accepted Mondays to Sundays from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

PhilSys-Davao clarified that the sites are for the Step 2 biometrics process of those who have completed the Step 1 sign-up online or during the house-to-house visit of registration staff.

Walk-ins will be accepted in place of those who did not show up.

“So happy ‘coz finally, I finished Step 2 and will just wait for my PhilID card,” Arnel Rebayla posted on Facebook on October 12.

The Philippine Statistics Authority has partnered with SM Malls nationwide for the implementation of PhilSys.

As of September, more than 34 million Filipinos have finished the registration process while 5,024,018 PhilID cards have been released to the Philippine Postal Corporation for delivery.

Signed into law by President Rodrigo R. Duterte in August 2018, Republic Act 11055, or the Philippine Identification System Act, aims to establish a single national ID for all Filipinos and resident aliens.

The national ID shall be a valid proof of identity that shall be a means of simplifying public and private transactions, enrollment in schools, and the opening of bank accounts.

It also seeks to boost efficiency, especially in dealing with government services where people will only need to present one ID during transactions. (PNA)