Philippine Immigration

27 June 2008

Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Marcelino Libanan unveiled yesterday his development agenda geared towards the nation’s security and creating a pro-investment and tourism climate in the Philippines .

Addressing a luncheon meeting by members of the Consular Corps of the Philippines at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Makati City, Libanan summed up his agenda as a policy direction where “the economy is nurtured, the interest of peace and order secured and the vision for the future is ensured.”

Libanan said that since he assumed the helm of the BI a year ago, it was always his intention to shift the bureau’s role from that with a “hammer and shield” mindset to being a pro-investment catalyst with a global perspective.

The BI chief proudly announced to his audience that he has been successful in instituting postitive reforms in the BI that helped advance his pro-investment and tourism agenda.

Among these programs, he said, was the launching of the visa-issuance-made-simple (VIMS) program where visa processing and issuances in the BI were simplified and fast-tracked for the convenience of the transacting public.

He likewise cited the implementation of the pre-arranged visa-upon-arrival program which not only attracted foreign businessmen and promoted the investment climate but also helped eradicate human smuggling in the country’s ports.

As a result of these twin projects, he said the BI’s income from January to May stood at more than P812 million, up by 31-percent or P191.8-million over the 620.7 million the bureau collected in the same period last year.

Libanan also mentioned the “no touch, no contact” policy now being practiced at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) which drew praises from foreign governments and improved the bureau’s image.

“There are many more pro-investment programs to come and we shall see to it that the interest of tourism, trade, commerce, industry are not left out,” he said.

Libanan explained that improvement in the BI’s facilities and services at the airports as he disclosed that all immigration counters at the NAIA are now equipped with passport readers.

He said a national operations center is now in place that records and keeps track of all activities and events at the NAIA on a 24-hour basis.

He added that the bureau has established an electronic linkup with the Interpol and other law enforcement agencies to strengthen its campaign against foreign criminals and fugitives from justice.

Libanan disclosed that serious efforts have been made to professionalize the bureau’s rank and file and eradicate corruption, adding that a total of 24 in-house trainings on various immigration-related programs.

He said these personnel capability-building programs catapulted the BI to the fourth place among 76 other government agencies in the list of anti-corruption champions of the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC).

He also reported that last January, the BI was named valedictorian by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) among the agencies that took part in its performance management system and office performance evaluation system project. (BI News)