Camarines Sur Representative LRay Villafuerte has called on local executives to fast-track the digitalization programs of their respective local government units (LGUs) to speed up the contactless delivery of frontline services to the public and the shift to paperless transactions.
The former Camarines Sur governor reminded LGUs that based on the provisions of the Ease of Doing Business (EODB) law, they only have until June this year to put their respective electronic business one-stop shops (BOSS) in place.
According to the Anti Red Tape Authority (ARTA), LGUs will be required to move their entire business permit application processes online by mid-June.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated our transition to electronic-based transactions. The LGUs should step up their efforts in putting up their respective online business registration processes to stay ahead of the game and make their localities more conducive to business, especially amid the pandemic,” said Villafuerte, an author of Republic Act (RA) 11032 or the EODB law.
According to the Anti Red Tape Authority (ARTA), LGUs will be required to move their entire business permit application processes online by mid-June.
The ARTA and other government agencies recently signed a joint memorandum circular (JMC) to standardize the online business registration process that would cut the number of required application forms to just one.
Earlier, Villafuerte said LGUs could help Malacañang improve the Philippines’ global competitiveness in attracting foreign direct investments (FDIs) by putting up their respective BOSS centers, in support of RA 11032 and Administrative Order (AO) No. 23, which directed all government offices to eliminate cumbersome official processes that impact businesses and investments.
In AO 23, President Duterte sought the elimination or reduction of “excessive regulations at all levels of government, which are more than necessary to implement their respective mandates, create high costs on businesses, inhibit job creation and discourage private sector investment.”
Villafuerte is an advocate of digitalization partly to clear the way to the adoption of online transactions across the country that would make the Philippines a more conducive place for doing business.
He has introduced a congressional bill on E-Governance, which aims to develop, promote and interlink electronic government services and processes in all state agencies and corporations to ensure that the Philippines gets ahead of the curve in the “new normal” way of life under a post-coronavirus pandemic era.
Villafuerte is an advocate of digitalization partly to clear the way to the adoption of online transactions across the country that would make the Philippines a more conducive place for doing business.
Villafuerte’s measure is outlined under House Bill (HB) No. 1248, which has since been consolidated with other similar proposals and substituted by HB 6927.
The House of Representatives has approved HB 6927 in August last year and has transmitted it to the Senate, where it remains pending.
HB 6927 mandates the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to craft and then implement an E-Government Master Plan, which has several major imperatives topped by the integration of the citizen frontline services of all agencies handling business registration, digitization of archives, and records management information systems (MIS) across all offices, and adoption of an Internet-based electronic payment facility to enable people and companies to remit payments electronically to agencies.
Villafuerte said an e-government system that will allow people to transact with the government online will minimize official corruption as it will mean zero contact between applicants and government executives or employees in charge of processing and issuing official documents.
He said the safety and other health protocols required to prevent the spread of the lethal Covid-19 virus has given the national and local governments a strong impetus to accelerate bridging the country’s digital divide.