Work at the Bureau of Immigration (BI) main office in Intramuros, Manila remains suspended as it extended until today the conduct of a thorough sanitation and disinfection of the building to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
In an advisory, BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said the extended closure of the main building is “necessary to avoid intermittent delivery of services to the public and ensure that the Bureau’s employees in the safest possible workplace”.
Thus, he said, rigorous sanitation and disinfection of the BI main building will be performed by personnel from the agency’s general services section.
Morente again advised those with booked online appointments to secure their new schedules when the main office reopens for business.
He urged the transacting public to keep themselves updated of further announcements and advisories by checking the BI website at www.immigration.gov.ph and its social media accounts.
“We have other BI offices in different parts of the Metro that are open to cater to the immediate needs of the transacting public,” said Morente.
Bureau of Immigration main bldg. still closed; will reopen Thursday
The list of other BI offices, according to Morente, may likewise be found in their website.
The BI will continue to maintain a skeletal workforce in some of its offices at the main building, particularly those rendering general and support services that are critical to the operations of the agency.
Meanwhile, BI personnel assigned at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) welcomed the government’s decision to temporarily cut the number of inbound travelers and restriction on the entry of foreigners from abroad.
The BI frontliners said limiting the number of inbound travellers to 1,500 daily would lessen the chance of exposure to the virus at this time when there is an upsurge of Covid-19 cases in the country.
Meanwhile, operatives of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) arrested Thursday an American fugitive wanted in his homeland for violations of his probation.
American national Richard Edward Vukelic, 57, was arrested in Davao City in a joint operation between the BI Fugitive Search Unit (FSU) and BI Mindanao Task Group (MITG).
The BI earlier received official communication from US authorities stating that Vukelic is wanted in the US for violating his probation. He faces cases for driving under the influence and illegal discharge of firearms in violation of US Penal Law in the State of Arizona.
Source: Bureau of Immigration, Republic of the Philippines