Philippine E-government?!?!

Although I am unconvinced that I will get to see a Digital Philippine Government in my lifetime, I still see great promise in what the entire concept stands for. If achieved properly, I see e-government as highly effective for the Philippines especially since we are a paper information-intensive institution.

However, despite the numerous advantages of digital government, we should all still be aware of the dangers that it poses.

After our talk (“scare”) 2 weeks ago on Internet Security, the first danger that I see is with the security of the Internet and the content on it. After learning how easy it is for digital/computer “experts” to hack into one’s computer even with all the preventive measures that one sets up, I can with 100% certainty say that once our government transforms into digitalization, someone will definitely hack the system that our government will set up. In view of this, we are all aware that corruption is a scary and saddening problem in our institutions today. I am inclined to believe that with digitalization, corruption might be easier for those a little more knowledgeable with computers than the average government or non-government worker just as I am inclined to believe that the 2010 “computerized” elections will also be rigged by the government. But that is an entirely different topic altogether.

The second problem is Internet stability. Even though the Internet has been with us for a number of years already, it is imperative to maintain secure, stable governance of the Internet in the future. Another is the increasing monetization of what used to be free in the Internet. Programs or any other service which used to be free in the Internet is now being charged. According to www.digital-government.net, “the increasingly marketization of information and knowledge, including government information, is deeply troubling and carries important implications for societies.”

The last problem is lack of education. Despite already being in the 21st century, a lot of Filipinos are still not familiar with the computer and the Internet. Even if some Filipinos are familiar with it, their knowledge is very much limited to surfing the Internet for things considered as entertainment. They check e-mail, download music, videos and games or log-in Facebook or Friendster. The average Filipino doesn’t really associate the Internet with government. E-government is not merely above a “culture” shift in our government institutions but the digitalization of the Filipino society as well.

To conclude, “e-government brings great promise for economic savings, knowledge sharing, faster transactions and more. But at the same time, there are a host of fundamental governance challenges that must be addressed as societies move forward.”