NSO partners with SM City Baguio for issuance of security papers

by Lito Dar

Baguio City (31 July) — Just like its advertisement, “Here at SM, We’ve Got it All For you,” one can now request National Statistics documents at the SM City Baguio.

According to National Statistics Office (NSO) Regional Director Olivia Gulla, SM City Baguio is NSO’s new Batch Request System (BREQS) partner where the public can now apply for their NSO security papers or documents like birth, marriage and death certificates, as well as certificate of no marriage (Cenomar) while shopping or relaxing at the mall.

‘This is a welcome development. Aside from the convenience it could give to the public, it would also de-clog our regional office and provincial branch outlets from the hundreds of people that apply for security papers especially during peak season,’ Gulla said.

‘The daily average of applicants at the NSO regional office is continuously increasing. For the first half of this year, we average 846 applicants a day, which reached as high as an average of 1,159 applicants per day during the peak month of May.

Gulla explained that under NSO’s BREQS program, SM can now receive requests or applications then they will e-mail the applicants’ information to the regional office for processing. An SM representative will then personally pick-up the requested document for release to the applicants.

SM Baguio PR Manager Karen Nobres Padilla said mall goers/shoppers can now request or apply for NSO security documents at SM’s Open Business Service Center located at the third floor, near Netopia.

‘Mall goers can now conveniently apply for a birth, marriage and death certificate and also Cenomar at SM Baguio. The request can be claimed after three days and same NSO fee is being charge for each certificate, plus a minimal fee of P20 per request. This is part of SM’s commitment to continuously provide more convenient services to our costumers,’ Padilla said.

According to Padilla, SM City Baguio is one of the five SM malls all around the country to have an Open Business Service Center.

Aside from SM Baguio, Gulla stressed that the public can still always go to their regional office and to all their other service outlets in the region.’We also have a service outlet in Luna and Conner, Apayao; in Tabuk City; in Bontoc and Tadian in Mountain Province. We are also now planning to set up another service outlet in the provincial capitol of Abra,’ Gulla said. (PIA)