In an announcement by President-elect Marcos’ camp, Fil-Chi information technology (IT) expert and seasoned lawyer Ivan Uy has been chosen as the next secretary for the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).
This was announced during a press conference by incoming Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles. “He oversaw the formulation of the Philippine digital strategy from 2011 to 2016. He is an international commercial arbitrator on areas involving IT-related disputes,” shared Angeles.
Uy previously served as the chair of the Commission on Information and Communication and Technology (CICT) during the term of Benigno Aquino III.
He also served as the Supreme Court’s chief information officer (CIO) under former Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. It was during his time in the Supreme Court that Uy was able to implement the digitalization shift which he is known for.
According to the CIO forum, an organization of CIOs in different agencies of the government, Uy has expertise on electronic evidence, e-commerce, computer forensics, digital ethics and cybercrime.
Uy will be replacing acting DICT Secretary Emmanuel Rey Caintic. In terms of his vision for the DICT, Uy says that he will “focus on the digital infrastructure which was among the main programs and campaign promises of Marcos”.
Uy is a graduate of legal management at the Ateneo De Manila University. He pursued his law degree at the University of the Philippines and also studied overseas at the University of Minnesota through the esteemed Hubert H. Humphrey fellowship.