Crackdown resumes vs overstaying aliens

CEBU, Philippines - The Bureau of Immigration has resumed its crackdown on illegal aliens following a two-month moratorium.

BI Commissioner Siegfred Mison announced the resumption of the campaign against overstaying foreigners during his visit in Cebu last Friday.

Mison urged all undocumented foreign nationals in the country to surrender and pay the corresponding penalties rather than wait to be caught and face deportation.

“We have two months moratorium last March and April for them to voluntarily surrender and we have collected at least P14 million as penalties sa lahat na nag surrender,” said Mison.

Mison was the guest of honor during the blessing and inauguration of the BI-Cebu District VII office at J Mall Center in Mandaue City.

Mison said that during the two months moratorium majority of those who surrendered were Chinese and Indian nationals.

The moratorium was done in order to give chance to those foreigners who have been illegally staying in the country to process their documents and pay the corresponding penalties to legalize their stay here.

“Dahil kung hindi, I will have them deported or jail them and blacklist them. At kung blacklisted na sila, hindi na sila makabalik sa atin,” Mison said.

He could not, however, provide the figures how many illegal aliens are in the country.

BI-Cebu District VII alien control officer Casimiro Madarang III said that the whereabouts of illegal aliens will be known only when they have already problems with the immigration.

Madarang said that illegal aliens should come out and make their stay legal and be part in the mainstream society.

Mison said the crackdown will continue until stopped by the Depart of Justice.

“Sa ngayon tuloy-tuloy pa rin ang programang ito. Wala pang directive from DOJ kung kailan ito tatapusin,” Mison said.

At least 33 undocumented foreigners (23 Chinese and 10 Russians) were arrested in Cebu last November following the launching of the “Alien Mapping Program.”

The program was designed to keep track of the foreigners in the country, check the status of their stay, and enhance the government’s revenue collection.—(FREEMAN)