Inihayag ng Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) na napigilan nito ang passport applications ng mahigit 170 kuwestiyunable na nasyonalidad.
Iniulat ito ni DFA Assistant Secretary Adelio Cruz sa pagdinig ng Senate Subcommittee on Finance sa panukalang 2025 budget ng ahensya na nagkakahalaga ng P27.4 billion noong Huwebes.
“Since November last year, we were able to prevent the application of questionable nationalities applying for a Philippine passport: more than 171 attempts were prevented from the Office of the Consular Affairs,” ayon kay Cruz.
Sa bilang na ito, nasa 71 ang isinumite sa National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
"Most were first time, all with delayed registration of births,” paliwanag ni Cruz ng tanungin ni Senator Loren Legarda kung ang aplikante ay first-time pa lamang na nag-apply.
Sinabi ni Cruz na may ilang dayuhan ang may balidong birth certificates, pero may ilan namang “obviously fraudulent.”
"What we do to ensure that this does not happen again is, if it is a questionable application, we get the biometrics of that person, flag it all over the country to avoid their forum shopping, and attempt to apply to other offices,” ayon kay Cruz.
Kinansela na rin ng DFA ang inisyu nitong pasaporte para sa 66 “foreign nationals.”
