Senator Bong Go: “We need e-governance to provide our people with the services they need from the comfort of their homes or workplaces.”
BONG GO — On Wednesday, the senator urged Congress to pursue the immediate passage of the proposed e-Governance Act which seeks to promote the use of digital payments for government collections and disbursements.
The senator made the call after President Rodrigo Duterte issued Executive Order 170 last Thursday, May 12, directing all agencies, departments, and instrumentalities of the government to adopt digital payments for their systems.
Also, the Executive Order covers government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCCs), state universities and colleges (SUCs), and local government units (LGUs).
Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go has been reiterating the need for the digitalization of the financial management operations in the government in order to improve efficiency and transparency in the use of public funds.
The senator filed the proposed e-Governance Act in 2020 or Senate Bill No. 1738.
According to him, the government must harness the power of information and communications technology in order to better serve its purpose and to bring the government closer to the people in an age where almost everything can be done online and through other digital platforms.
“We need e-governance to provide our people with the services they need from the comfort of their homes or workplaces. Not only shall it enable our bureaucracy to better transition into the ‘new normal’ but it will also cut or minimize red tape and corruption,” the senator said.
The said bill primarily seeks to provide the establishment of an interconnected, integrated, and interoperable information and resource-sharing and communications network spanning the entirety of the national and local government, an information database, an internal records management information system, and digital portals for the delivery of public services.
READ ALSO: President Duterte Allows Digital Payments For Government Disbursements, Collections
Senator Go reiterated the passage of the measure into law will accelerate the digital transformation by removing the delays and other issues that come with traditional governance in communications, resource sharing, and information sharing.
“Nagbabago na po ang panahon. Meron na tayong makabagong pamamaraan ng pamumuhay. Meron na tayong makabagong teknolohiya,” he said. “Hindi dapat nagpapahuli ang ating gobyerno. In fact, the government should spearhead the country’s transition to the digital age.”
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