New Chairman Of CICT Named

Almost exactly a month of the new administration and with much speculations in recent days regarding the fate of the government’s Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT), a new Chairman is named in the person of Ivan Uy, a lawyer and former Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the Supreme Court. The news was confirmed to I-Café Pilipinas by Commissioner Monchito Ibrahim who stood as the commission’s caretaker on hold-over capacity until the recent appointment. Atty. Ivan john E. Uy, prior to his appointment, served as the CIO of the country’s High Court and pioneered the automation of various technology systems across the entire judiciary. He has worked closely with various Chief Justices in crafting and planning for the computerization of processes in Philippine Judiciary.

The position of CICT Chairman enjoyed a cabinet level recognition by the previous administration but the commission is generally believed to be standing on unstable ground because CICT was merely a creation of Executive Order No. 269 in 2004 by former
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. It was meant to be a transitory body preceding the establishment of a full-fledged Department of ICT (DICT). However, the said line department failed to get formed as bills filed for the creation of DICT was not approved during the 14th Congress. The new Aquino administration remains silent regarding its long term plan for the commission.

The CICT was actually one of the enablers of the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry in the Philippines. It stimulated the growth of the industry by establishing a stable private and public sector relationship and by stimulating the ecosystem through economic grants and building infrastructure that encouraged foreign investment in the country. It proved to the Filipino people that ICT can be an effective engine for economic growth.

For all its accomplishments, outgoing Commissioner Ibrahim said he is hopeful the new administration would continue what the CICT has already done. He maintained that the creation of an ICT line department is especially crucial if the new administration wants to leapfrog other Southeast Asian neighbors in terms of economic development.