The President expressed dismay at the performance of the immigration bureau and warned those involved in irregularities, including helping fugitives to escape the county, they would be held accountable.
Addressing the BI anniversary rites in Intramuros, Manila, Aquino said that he expects the immigration bureau to improve its work and stay on the straight path.
“Let’s be honest: the Bureau of Immigration is one of the agencies involved in issues and controversies in the past years so forgive me if I will take this opportunity to express some things that have disappointed not only me but also our boss,” Aquino said in Filipino at the start of his speech.
The President then laid down several cases that caught his ire, including the controversial escape of former Palawan Governor Joel Reyes and his brother, Coron, Palawan Mayor Mario Reyes, both wanted for the murder of environmentalist Gerry Ortega.
Aquino asked the immigration bureau to explain how the Reyes brothers were able to leave the country last March 18 despite a lookout bulletin issued by the Department of Justice last March 13.
These high-profile fugitives would not have escaped if BI personnel did its job well, according to Aquino.
“In this kind of instances, we should expect fugitives to do everything to escape jail. They won’t introduce themselves as accused, they won’t say they are part of the watch list, and they won’t surrender to authorities. But if the Bureau of Immigration would match this with efficiency and intense monitoring, they will be arrested even if they change their appearance or name or fake documents,” the President said.
Aquino bewailed that the escape of the Reyes brothers clearly showed the “shortcoming” of the BI in fulfilling their responsibilities.
“These are high-profile suspects whose faces were shown in the media but still managed to escape without difficulty. Can this happen if there was no connivance
Article source: http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/373134/aquino-dismayed-at-bi-performance
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