The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has expressed concern over recent interception of foreign nationals misrepresenting themseleves as Filipino citizens.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said that earlier this month, the BI reported intercepting a Hong Kong-Canadian national suspected to have misrepresented himself as a Filipino.
He also said that the BI’s Travel Control and Enforcement Unit (TCEU) recorded two more cases of misrepresentation this month at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) wherein a 35-year-old woman identified as Nong Thi Luyen was apprehended at the NAIA Terminal 3 last January 17 as she attempted to depart to Vietnam via a Cebu Pacific Airways flight to Saigon.
After initially presenting a Philippine passport bearing a Philippine name, Nong raised the suspicion of immigration officers when she was unable to answer basic details about her identity.
“She later admitted during questioning that she is a Vietnamese citizen and that she last arrived in the country almost two decades ago. Apparently, she wanted to evade overstaying penalties so she resorted to misrepresenting herself,” Tansingco said.
Investigation further bared that the Philippine passport presented by the passenger belonged to someone else.
Also intercepted at the NAIA Terminal 1 last January 23 was Hailan Zhang, 36, who attempted to depart the country via a Thai airways flight to Hanoi. He initially presented a Philippine passport, and carried identification cards and permits, claiming he was a businessman in the country.
The BI officers however, noted numerous inconsistencies in his statements, and he later admitted his real identity. The BI’s forensic documents laboratory also certified that while his Philippine passport is genuine, it bore a fake BI departure stamp.
Both Nong and Hailan were charged for violation of the Philippine Immigration Act, and will remain at the BI’s warden facility in Taguig City pending their deportation, Tansingco said.
