The Office of the City Building Official (OCBO) here launched Tuesday afternoon a new digitalized system for processing building-related permits for the convenience of their clients.

In an interview Wednesday, OCBO officer-in-charge Khashayar Toghyani said the new Online Building-Related Permit System (OBPS) would streamline government processes for Dabawenyos by enhancing government service through modernization.

“Building permit applications will be more accessible as they will be easily lodged, monitored, assessed, and approved. No more long queues and most importantly no more red tape,” Toghyani, an architect, said.

He noted that the building permit application is only the first phase of their digitalization, with the second phase set for completion in the next few weeks focused on handling occupancy and stand-alone permits.

“The only way is through digitalization and automating some of the processes to eliminate some of the unnecessary documents. It will not only help the applicants but also lighten the workload of our workers on tasks like monitoring the safety of the building and issues on building officials,” Toghyani said.

Part of the ONPS feature, he said, is to check the authenticity and verify the documents submitted online.

“It will authenticate attached land titles if it is notarized and signed by a qualified professional. After the documents are uploaded and approved, we will still require them to submit the hard copy of their documents,” he added.

Toghyani also urged industry partners to strictly comply with the provisions of the National Building Code for smooth transactions.

Meanwhile, Mayor Sebastian Duterte expressed delight that after more than a year of planning, the OBPS is now operational.

He, however, urged the office to continue accepting walk-in clients who opt to submit their documents via face-to-face transactions. (PNA)