Duterte wants dismissal of BI execs in ‘pastillas’ scam

MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte is expecting the Department of Justice (DOJ) to make sure that the personnel of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) involved in the so-called “pastillas” bribery scandal will be dismissed from service, Malacañang said on Thursday.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque issued the statement, as he admitted that Duterte may have not been aware that the BI officials linked to “pastillas” scheme have returned to work pending the results of the investigations.

This, after Duterte, in his sixth and last State of the Nation Address (SONA) delivered on Monday, said he had fired around 43 BI personnel due to corruption claims hurled against them.

“Siguro po, obvious ang sagot. Hindi po siguro alam ni Presidente, hindi pa sila nasisisante. Ang alam lang niya, nasuspinde (Perhaps, the answer is obvious. The President may not be aware that they are not yet dismissed from service and are just suspended),” Roque said in a virtual press conference.

On Wednesday, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said the 43 BI agents Duterte was referring to those already back at work after a six-month suspension without pay.

Guevarra added that the criminal charges against the BI personnel are still pending before the Office of the Ombudsman, while separate administrative cases are still under review by the DOJ.

Duterte’s remarks during his final SONA sends a message that the erring Immigration personnel must be booted out of office “immediately,” Roque said.

“Siguro po, ang epekto ng kaniyang mga binitawang salita, iyan po ay mandato sa DOJ, sa CID, gawin niyong lahat para masisante iyan sa lalong mabilis na panahon. Hindi po katanggap-tanggap ang ginawa nilang pastillas scheme. Kinakailangan po talaga, sibakin sila (The impact of his message is that the DOJ should perform its mandate to ensure their dismissal as soon as possible. The pastillas scheme is not acceptable. They must really be fired),” he said.

Duterte in November last year summoned the BI officials linked to the “pastillas” modus wherein they hide the greased money in rolled bond paper which is similar to the wrapper for the milk candy.

The scheme was exposed in February last year after corruption Immigration officials were accused of favoring Chinese nationals to enter the country sans undergoing background checks in exchange for money.

Chinese nationals working in the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators industry were allegedly paying around PHP10,000 as grease money to receive preferential treatment from BI officials.