The Perks of an E-Passport

By Tricia Cacho

Beat: Government
Category: Unpublished
Type: Column

Photo from cccbatch75

The Department of Foreign Affairs released the new and improved passports this year, also known as the “E-Passport,” with its enhanced features: “An IC chip storing passport holder's photograph and personal information; an Automated Fingerprint Identification System which guards against identity theft and fraud; overt security features such as invisible personal information, letter-screen, microprinting, and UV reactive ink; and enhanced Machine Readable Passport using biometric technology.” (from www.dfa.gov.ph)

This technology has not been warmly welcomed by some of the Filipino people, especially the Anakpawis partylist, who claims that the release of the E-Passports was just a cover-up to the corruption of the government. Truth be told, the E-Passport Project used up a large sum of money amounting to PHP2 Billion, and one could really doubt if all of it really went to the E-Passport Project. Plus, this big change on the passport system might be a hassle for those who are illiterate with the advanced technologies that we have today.

Let’s try to think where the PHP2 Billion went. The Department of Foreign Affairs just built their new building at Parañaque, and built other offices in 10 different regions. They also had their system transferred online, so that everyone would be able to access and schedule for an appointment with the DFA, which means that one doesn’t have to go to the DFA and line up for a long time just to get a passport application. The PHP2 Billion sacrifice has its fruits, after all.

One could say that E-Passport costs a fortune. Yes, it’s true, but the benefits that one could get are worth the additional payment. This E-Passport is an improved version of an old passport, and it doesn’t need to be replaced after a couple of years, unlike the old ones, in which we need to renew every now and then. The stalls at Recto that make passports could be at risk too, but can you risk your identity being copied or stolen? With the E-Passport, one’s identity is secured and less prone to theft and fraud.

This E-Passport thing sounds cool, but will it easy to implement to our country? A lot of people prefer the old passports because we are already used to it. However, if we are satisfied with our old policies with the old passports, we’ll never grow—in terms of technology and in terms of coping up with the world.

Whether the whole PHP2 Billion was or was not wholly spent on the E-Passport Project, I’m very sure that a lot of changes had happened. If we don’t cooperate with what the government has made for us, the harder it will be to implement that system, which means that the PHP2 Billion might be put to waste. Let’s think of this as baby steps to improving our country, and little by little we’ll go up to the top.