PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. yesterday said Malacañang is looking into the alleged corrup-tion in the Bureau of Immigration (BI), including those contained in a letter supposedly written by employees of the bureau.
‘’Well, of course, we’re looking at it. But, you know, mahirap mapag-aralan nang mabuti kung white paper na hindi napirmahan at saka walang specifics. But nonetheless, everything like this, we look into it, and we will continue to do that (But it’s difficult to study a white paper carefully if it’s not signed and doesn’t have specifics),” the President said in an ambush interview in Malacañang.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro, in a briefing, stressed the need for evidence to support the allegations.
Castro said the Department of Justice (DOJ), which is conducting the probe, is calling on all those who have evidence to come forward and send their proof to support the corruption alle-gations.
“Mas maganda po kung may reklamo ay may kasama na rin po sanang ebidensiyang nakapa-loob. Mahirap po na white paper lang at walang pinanghahawakang anumang ebidensiya or isinusumite dahil mauubos po ang oras ng DOJ kung puro white paper lamang po ang kanilang pagtutuunan ng pansin (It would be better if the complaint included some evidence. It is difficult to just rely on the white paper without having any piece of evidence submitted because it would take the DOJ a lot of time if they would just depend on the white paper),” she said.
A letter, supposedly sent by BI employees to the President last week, accused Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado of corruption, including the supposed mishandling of cases related to the deportation of foreigners connected to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGOs) facilities that have been shut down.
Viado has denied the allegations, saying these are part of a supposed smear campaign against him.
Yesterday, Viado hinted that the alleged smear drive could be related to his opposition to allow the release of detained businessman Tony Yang.
Yang, who is the brother of Michael Yang, a former economic adviser of former president Ro-drigo Duterte and who was implicated in the Pharmally scandal, was apprehended at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 last year while attempting to leave the Philippines.
In a Senate inquiry on September 2024, Yang admitted he illegally obtained his Filipino citizen-ship to establish businesses in the country. Born in 1970, he only received his Philippine birth certificate in 2004 at the age of 34.
In a statement, the second he issued this week, Viado said he wanted to clear the air on Yang’s case.
“First, it is a fact that, yes, there was an attempt to get Mr. Yang released on bail by virtue of a resolution which was drafted and passed during my absence. This was a clear effort to slip this resolution past me,” he said.
“Second, it is a fact that I was informed about this attempt. Upon my return, I gave strict in-structions to ensure that this resolution is rescinded. It is a fact that I rejected the plea to allow Mr. Yang to be released on bail. It is a fact that it was my decision to keep him in detention while facing judicial processes here in our country,” he added.
The BI last December confirmed that a petition for bail was filed on behalf of Yang.
“The Bureau of Immigration confirms that an application for bail on behalf of Tony Yang was filed on 16 December 2024, based on a 04 December 2024 medical certification issued by the Medical and Dental Services of the House of Representatives,” the BI said then.
However, it did not specify who filed the application for bail and for what reason the medical certificate was issued.
Viado also did not identify who filed the bail on Yang’s behalf.
The BI issued the statement then after Sen. Risa Hontiveros raised the alarm that there are some immigration officials pushing to have Yang released on bail.
Viado said that “subsequent requests were made to me asking me to reconsider my position re-garding the situation of Mr. Yang.” He did not identify who made the requests.
“For the record, I stood by my position: Mr. Yang shall remain and still remains in detention,” he said, adding that while he found the effort to have Yang released on bail disgusting, he “pre-ferred to keep the matter within the agency and opted to ensure that it did not get unwarranted public attention.”
“There are matters which I believe must be addressed within the agency. As the saying goes, I do not wish to wash dirty laundry in public,” he said.
At the same time, Viado maintained he does not know if his stance on Yang’s case is the reason for the smear drive.
“I do not know. Only the perpetrator of the vilification effort can address that,” he said.
The BI chief said he kept Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla fully apprised of the incident. “It will be up to him to take the appropriate action,” he said. – With Ashzel Hachero
