Senator Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV said that the Philippines needs to transition out of age-old mechanisms and systems as the country continues to struggle with its fundamentals.
At the 6th Management Association of the Philippines NextGen Conference, Mr. Aquino said that the country is struggling in many aspects, including infrastructure, mobility, housing, jobs, food, and education.
“For the next generation, we find ourselves in that interesting space where we have to handle the fundamentals and at the same time look towards the future and see all of these opportunities for growth and change,” he said.
As the country addresses corruption issues on flood control projects, he said that using blockchain technology in national transactions could help deter corruption.
In particular, the senator proposed the Citizen Access and Disclosure of Expenditures for National Accountability (CADENA) Act, which will mandate the full disclosure of all government transaction documents.
“We had two hearings, we had a technical working group, we now have three roundtables, and next week I will be sponsoring the CADENA Act,” he said.
“We are getting a lot of support for this bill. Very, very interesting. People are now looking at technology to solve corruption issues,” he added.
Once realized, he said that it will make the Philippines the first country to put its national budget and transactions on the blockchain, online, for everybody to see.
“I am sponsoring this in Nov. 12, and right now with the momentum we are getting from the people and with the momentum we are getting from the government to push for this act, maybe by the first quarter of 2026, this can already be law,” he said. — Justine Irish D. Tabile
