IMMIGRATION Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado yesterday said it is expecting more than 110,000 travelers during the holiday season.
Viado said the number is based on last year’s data when Christmas weekend arrivals were at an average of more than 53,000, while departures were at an average of 43,000.
“We are expecting the numbers to further increase this year, and we believe that it will now exceed pre-pandemic numbers,” he said.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the BI saw an average of 55,000 daily arrivals during the month of December.
The agency likewise recorded an average of 47,000 departures in December 2019.
To prepare for the influx of travelers, Viado said preparations have been made to ensure smooth immigration operations during the holiday season.
“As a regular practice, applications for leave of frontline officers are denied during the peak season to ensure full deployment capacity,” he said, adding that “we have ramped up our operations at major international airports, with additional personnel to maintain a smooth flow of passengers.”
In addition to new officers, Viado said the BI will be deploying personnel from its main office to support airport operations.
He said they have also activated its rapid response teams and deployed more mobile counters to ensure efficient processing during the peak season.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) yesterday scored former Philippine College of Physicians (PCP) president Anthony Leachon for making “malicious” allegations concerning the supposed “excessive budget” that the agency allotted for its Christmas party.
In a statement, PhilHealth said Leachon appears to be “misinformed” over the P138 million expenditure.
“This is to clarify Dr. Tony Leachon’s post on his social media account maliciously accusing PhilHealth of excessive budget for its Christmas party. It is unfortunate that he is misinformed,” said PhilHealth as it urged Leachon to “be more responsible and cautious before releasing any statements that may mislead the public.”
In his social media posts, Leachon alleged that PhilHealth is set to spend P138 million for its Christmas party. His post even included an itemized list of items and the budget allocation for each of them.
“The PhilHealth leadership team is abusive for not using funds wisely… P138 million for Christmas party!” he said.
PhilHealth said it is fully complying with the directive of Malacañang to scale down Christmas celebrations, pointing out that it has issued Management Advisory No. 2024-003 directing all its offices in the country to observe austerity measures in the conduct of such activities.
“The Committee has ordered the cancellation of some activities and the donation of savings generated to communities severely affected by the recent typhoons,” it said.
It also said the series of activities cited by Leachon is for the 30th anniversary celebration of PhilHealth in 2025, and not for this year’s Christmas celebration.
“These activities are year-round and nationwide in scope and will be participated in by the employees, stakeholders, champions and advocates, and more importantly our members,” it explained. – With Gerard Naval
