A lawmaker on Thursday assured that the 19th Congress can pass the e-governance bill into law to usher in innovations designed to be the “enabler and enhancer” of current and future government programs.

Davao Oriental Rep. Cheeno Miguel Almario gave the assurance as the House Committee on Information and Communications Technology held its technical working group meeting (TWG) to fine-tune the proposed e-governance law, which is among the priority legislation cited by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in his first State of the Nation Address.

Almario said the transition to e-governance is significant and timely, as it would provide the Filipinos the “highest level of convenience” in their transactions with the government.

“This is the future of governance. E-Governance will be the heart and blood of the new government,” he said.

The measure aims to unify and streamline the processes of delivering programs and services across all government offices through digitalization.

Once enacted into law, Almario, who chairs the TWG, said e-government and e-governance will allow the synergy of data among and between national agencies and local government units, fostering swiftness and efficiency in their operations.

“As a landmark legislation, this is the next step for an even better government. It is truly an honor to be a member of the 19th Congress, and to chair this technical working group,” he said.

Marcos has emphasized the need to hasten the country’s digital transformation to enable his administration to provide “fast, transparent, and efficient” services to the public.

Marcos said the government must take “full advantage” of the new technologies and techniques to provide the Filipino people the “best” services they deserve.

“And if we are to succeed in digitalizing our bureaucracy, our government, and to make the way that we do business, the way that we work, the way that we even communicate with one another, we (have) to make it as efficient, as streamlined, and as affordable as possible so that we can provide that extremely important service,” he said.

Marcos reiterated his plan to make the government “more adaptive to fast-changing developments,” as he noted that the Philippines has ranked 89th out of 193 countries in the United Nations E-Government Survey.

The Philippines’ current standing is not “encouraging”, he said, adding that this shows that the country is experiencing a “regression”.

Speaker Martin Romualdez earlier assured that the House would speed up plenary approval of bills seeking to digitalize the government’s voluminous records under the proposed E-Governance Act and E-Government Act.

“We are one with President BBM and the Executive department in making government transactions, and delivering services, in a faster, more efficient, and more transparent way through digital platforms,” he said. (PNA)