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Sen. Padilla Open to Sponsor a Blockchain Bill

Photo for the Article - Sen. Padilla Open to Sponsor a Blockchain Bill
  • Senator Robinhood Padilla showed his intention to support a bill that will focus on blockchain adoption in the country. 
  • Padilla first learned about blockchain as early as 2014, when he attended a talk that highlighted the advantages of using blockchain for anti-terrorism campaigns. 
  • The senator also emphasized that the corruption in the country will stop once government transactions will be digitalized.

“I am here to support blockchain. I am here to do whatever you like me to do—to sponsor a bill for you? I will do it. Because I believe that the world is going digital.”

This is the bold statement of Senator Robinhood Padilla, who is also the Chair of the Senate Public Information and Mass Media Committee, as he spoke in front of the #CryptoPH Community during the Philippine Blockchain Week 2023. 

Sen. Padilla’s Introduction to Blockchain 

Senator Robin Padilla Philippine Blockchain Week 2023 Keynote Speech Clip

During his keynote speech, Padilla shared that he learned about blockchain technology when he attended a seminar that explained how blockchain can help in anti-terrorism. That was about 2014 to 2015.

“I was so impressed because the Philippines and the whole world are Islamophobic—the people were scared of our religion. That was my first exposure to blockchain.”

Blockchain’s Use Case From a Senator’s Perspective

According to Padilla, one of the reasons why the Philippines is behind compared to other countries, is because its citizens are not proactive but more reactive. 

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The reason why I am here is because this is the (way to show that I am) being proactive. This is where the world is going—digital. We have to be digitalized.”

Moreover, the Senator admitted that the very first problem in the country is corruption—and the “corruption here is professionalism.”

Photo for the Article - Sen. Padilla Open to Sponsor a Blockchain Bill

“We have to really get down to businesses and destroy this professionalism in corruption, and that the only way is going digital. So I am very thankful for the blockchain for educating our government when it comes to digital,” the Senator explained.

During the summit, Padilla was also said to meet executives from different blockchain-focused firms operating in the country. For him, blockchain technology will really help the government as it pushes for microfinance and digital technology. 

“As our country pushes microfinance, the only way to fight those big businesses is not to have access. If they do not have access to do business all over the world, then our small businesses will have a chance,” Sen. Padilla concluded.

Government’s Digitalization and Blockchain Adoption Efforts 

Photo for the Article - Sen. Padilla Open to Sponsor a Blockchain Bill

In September this year, blockchain startup Twala was selected by the Philippine Senate to help the Upper House’s internal processes by migrating their paper-based processes online.

Then in April, Twala also had a consultation meeting with the Judiciary Branch. According to the startup, the Supreme Court of the Philippines requested them to contribute their insights to the current efforts to create regulations that would enable the use of e-notarization in the country.

Consequently, during the first half of 2023, the Department of Information and Communications Technology has chosen local crypto exchange Coins.ph to conduct its “Blockchain 101: Blockchain for Beginners” webinar. The event aimed to educate individuals with little or no knowledge about blockchain technology.

Meanwhile, in 2022, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) pushed two blockchain-related initiatives in the country.

The DOST first partnered with Digital Pilipinas to lay out strategies for establishing university-based decentralized innovation centers across the Philippines. These centers aimed to promote education, industry, and government collaboration with blockchain and other emerging technologies.

Two months later, DOST highlighted its plans to train in-house scientists and technologists about how blockchain can be used and practically applied in the Philippines.

This article is published on BitPinas: Sen. Padilla Open to Sponsor a Blockchain Bill

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