Bayan Muna Party-list Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate on Sunday scored the company that was awarded the right to implement the national identification system on the security and sovereignty aspect of their system.
In a statement, the lawmaker said one of the issues about Idemia is it is a fully foreign-owned company with “dubious” background.
Idemia was the lowest bidder that bagged the national ID system, which was cheaper by P200 billion.
Initial reports from the World Bank showed Idemia was blacklisted from participating in any activities of the global finance organization due to unfair and questionable practices.
The national ID system came into the spotlight again after confusion on the database being used by the government to give relief for the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) emergency became a major issue.
Lawmakers believe that the national ID system would have made it easier for the government to distribute assistance to the people during this national health emergency.