JUSTICE Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla hit the nail right on the head when he said that “the attraction of money is very strong to…unscrupulous people” at the Bureau of Immigration.
Remulla bewailed the resurrection of “escort services,” or the practice of extorting money from foreigners, ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 pesos, so their entry to the Philippines may be facilitated by immigration personnel.
The advent of offshore gaming activities gave birth to the pastillas scheme whereby immigration officials and personnel competed with one another in snaring incoming Chinese nationals willing to pay for VIP treatment.
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“Those with problems in their visas and in their passports are being escorted in and out of our gates by unscrupulous BI officials and syndicates attached to them,” Remulla pointed out.
The current BI commissioner is lawyer Norman Tansingco, said to be a longtime employee of the Bureau. He was promoted by President Bongbong Marcos in September last year.
Tansingco promised to address the lingering issue of corruption as soon as he assumed office.
Is Remulla dissatisfied with Tansingco’s performance?
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Our immigration bureau has become a rich source of international embarrassment.
A Japanese national has recounted to Japanese media how he lived in deplorable conditions after being mixed with 500 other people at the bureau’s Bicutan holding facility which has the capacity to house only around 80 people.
Romi Hoshino, a detainee for about three months in 2019, said that the Bicutan center “was a place where money was everything.”
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According to Hoshino, inmates were made to sleep in cramped spaces. In exchange for bribe money, however, he was able to live alone in a room with an air-conditioner and television set.
He said he was also able to get smart phones which are supposedly banned in the facility. “You pay staff double the market price, and half of the money is a bribe. Delivery was easy because there were few surveillance cameras.”
Hoshino said he spent around a million Yen for bribes during his three-month stay in Bicutan.
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Who does not want to part with his money in exchange for convenience?
The power to order the arrest of foreigners and hold them in detention prior to deportation has become a litigious issue with allegations of corrupt motives arising every now and then.
The Constitution provides that no person may be deprived of his life, liberty, or property without due process of law. This protection extends to foreigners on temporary sojourn in the Philippines.
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It is also known that only courts of law have the power to issue warrants of arrest.
The exception is the BI’s power to order the arrest of foreigners pursuant to a final deportation order.
Acknowledging the need of the executive branch to address some “specialized, exigent public need,” the Supreme Court recently set the conditions justifying the issuance of administrative warrants.
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Has this Supreme Court ruling finally validated the power of administrative agencies to issue warrants?
Among the conditions set forth by the Supreme Court is that in cases where a person is deprived of liberty by virtue of an administrative warrant, the issuer of the warrant must immediately submit a verified notice to the regional trial court nearest to the detained for purposes of issuing a judicial commitment order./PN
